Days Gone Bye
by tanglingshadows
Summary: It was her eyes that drew him in and held him in place, his brother's one armed push that brought them together, and a bond forged in loss that helped them find their way. S3 AU-S5 AU.
1. Chapter 1

Days Gone Bye

This takes place in S3 when Merle is still at the prison.

The prompt came from abbyli, and I hope she loves it! Thank you for sharing theories and keeping Beth alive :)

She asked for a little time between Merle &amp; Judith with Beth, and some insight into what life had been like when Merle was a boy and Daryl was born.

It sorta snowballed other directions because I love Merle, and I wish he were still around.

This hasn't been seen by my editor, so all mistakes are mine.

* * *

Judith lay sleeping in the crook of her arm as she walked around the small cell.

She had left the main area of the cell block nearly an hour ago to try and get her to nap and had only just succeeded. Beth sighed and tried to relax her shoulders, but her muscles still burned. She had never known that just holding a baby would be such a work out.

"She finally give in, blondie?"

His gruff voice would have surprised her a couple of week ago, but she had heard the scrap of his boots seconds before he was at her cell.

_Observant. _

That's what Daryl had been teaching her to be.

"Hey there," she said with a welcoming smile. "I's just about to lay her down."

Merle stepped through the cell door and held out his arms. "Why don't ya let me hold her for a minute?"

Beth looked at him closely before nodding. "Sure. Why not?"

Merle grinned and looked down at the baby. She knew that he was a tough, hard man, but sometimes she would catch a hint of something else in his eyes. Especially when he looked at Judith or Daryl.

After handing her off, she stood awkwardly for a moment before sitting down on the bottom bunk. She wanted a nap, but knew that would never happen, so she settled for resting her elbows on her knees and watching as Merle swayed a little with Judith in his arms.

* * *

Daryl had just gotten off watch, and he decided he would go find Beth for some training exercises, if that's what anyone else who knew would call it. He wasn't even sure what made him offer to give Beth pointers, and he didn't want to admit to anyone that he really liked spending time with her away from everyone else either.

That would mean there was something there besides feeling the need to help her learn to protect herself, and Daryl wasn't ready for that.

He made sure to quiet his steps as he reached the area of the cell block she usually went to during Judith's nap time. Just a little test to see if she was on her guard. He paused suddenly as he heard her speak.

"Ya hold her like a pro," she said in a quiet, happy voice.

Daryl wondered who she was talking to, and when he heard his brother's voice, he had to stop himself from storming into the cell. Merle was a good guy, but he could be crude as hell, and Beth didn't need to hear his nonsense.

When he actually heard his brother's words, though, he stopped and gripped the strap of his bow. He wasn't sure what it was about her, but Beth Greene made people feel like they could open up, and for some reason, that's just what Merle seemed to be doing.

"I's almost eleven when they brought Daryl home. Spent most of my time takin' care of his ass."

"What about school?" She asked and Daryl wished he could peek around the wall and look into the cell and see her face. Her voice never gave anything away, but her eyes spoke exactly what she was feeling.

He didn't like her knowing about his shitty family life. Didn't want her pity at all. Not when she sometimes looked at him like he was one of the best men she had ever known.

"Didn't care too much for school," Merle answered. "Got my GED the first chance I got. I ain't stupid or nothin'. Just hated bein' all cooped up, so I ditched and took care of Daryl." He paused, and Daryl let out a breath slowly, hoping he was done, but as he continued on, his chest started to ache a little at his words. "Momma worked durin' the day, so she had to leave him with our old man. He wasn't worth a shit, and I came home one day and found Daryl just a wailin' in his crib, only a couple months old. I asked if he'd fed him yet, but Pops just socked me upside the head, and said it wasn't none of his concern then went back to drinkin'.

"I made him a bottle like I'd seen momma do, and then I never left him again. I've been there for all of it really. 'Cept for those few years I went off to the military. Daryl was old enough then to take care of himself, or I thought he had been."

"Wow," Beth whispered. "I'd've never thought—"

"Thought what?" Merle asked in a rough voice. "That I'd give a shit?"

"No," Beth said quickly. "That's not what I was gonna say. I just—I never thought about how y'all grew up. Just figured y'all were the rough and tumble type naturally, but not because ya had to be that way since ya were born."

"It was either that or die," Merle said quietly.

Daryl's breath was starting to come out in soft pants, and he closed his eyes. He tried not to think about growing up in that house with his old man. How his brother, who he thought was his best friend in the whole world, left him to fend for himself. He had known that Merle was the reason he was alive to begin with, but it had always stung to think about him leaving like he had.

"Ya must love him a lot to come here, knowin' that ya wouldn't be treated all that well," Beth said quietly.

"He's my blood. I'd do anythin' for him."

He almost snorted. They always broke it down to the most basic reasoning for them to look out for each other. Maybe Merle was like him and thought they couldn't really love anything. They just weren't built that way; so instead, they just chalked up caring to their DNA, which in itself was shitty.

"And he did anythin' for you, too. He left with ya," she said, and he heard the bunk squeak and wondered if she was sitting down or standing up.

"Hung my ass out to dry in Atlanta, though."

At that, Daryl took half a step before Beth's voice caught him. "Daryl said he went back for ya."

He finally peeked around the wall and watched as Beth ducked her head. Merle's eyes were glued to her face as he smirked. "Well, well, well, that's interstin'."

"What's interestin'?" She played off and picked at her jeans.

"Just that, ya say it like ya know for sure."

"I can read people really well most of the time," she lied and a pink tint lit her cheeks.

"Uh huh," Merle said and started to walk toward the crib to lay down Judith. Once she was situated, Merle stood straight and looked back at Beth who was looking at her shoes. He had his arms crossed over his chest and was staring a hole straight through her.

"What?" She asked and looked up at him, her eyebrows were pulled together.

"He's always been the sweet one, my baby brother. Ya couldn't do no better," Merle said, and Daryl pulled back a little at the pride in his voice. He had never heard him talk like that before.

"I know that," she whispered back.

Daryl's heart started racing, and he took two steps back and leaned against the wall, trying to figure out what he had just heard when Beth started talking again.

"No one really pays attention to me around here, so I hear things." Beth cleared her throat.

Merle chuckled, and Daryl heard the creaked of metal as he leaned against the writing desk maybe. "Just what the hell ya think ya know, blondie?"'

"Don't take Michonne anywhere," she spoke in a quiet, determined voice. "I knew the moment ya said that Rick didn't have it in him, that ya meant to do it yaself."

"Ya don't know shit," he muttered. Daryl could imagine Merle's jaw ticking as he worked on keeping his anger in check, but he couldn't step forward. He wanted to hear the rest.

"Whatever it is ya think you need to do to prove yaself, ya don't have to. I think we both know this is a suicide mission, and even if the Governor gets Michonne, that doesn't mean he's gonna stop. He wants this prison."

"That's the truth."

"Then we need ya here when that happens. Daryl'll need ya here."

"He don't need me no more," Merle argued. "He's done well for himself."

There was a few seconds of quiet, and Daryl tried to figure out who to be more pissed at. Merle for thinking he could pull off something like that or Rick for putting the idea in his head to begin with. He was no closer to the answer when Beth's voice broke him out of this thoughts.

"You'll break his heart, Merle. You'll die if ya go, and we both know it. Don't do this to him. Ya said ya been with him every step of the way, so keep on bein' there beside him. Ya ain't got shit to prove to anybody here."

Silence filled the cell again, and Daryl was sure that Merle was about to storm out, so he took another step back, continuing to try and process what he had just heard.

"I'll tell him," she threatened. "I'll tell him everythin', and the minute your ass is out those gates, he's gonna be on your tail. Ya wouldn't want anythin' to happen to Daryl."

"Neither would you," he argued back.

"I don't want to see Daryl hurt," she whispered, and he felt his heart skip a beat. "He's my friend."

"Friend, my ass," Merle with a snort. "I'll keep an eye on it for ya," he said quietly.

"Huh?"

"Nothin', blondie. Ya ain't gotta worry about shit. I ain't takin' Michonne nowhere. Governor'll come this way with or without her, and I ain't gonna get my hand dirty for Officer Friendly, no matter how nice this prison life is. When he comes, though, I'll do what it takes to keep my brother safe."

"I'd never ask ya to do less than that. Ya ain't stupid, ya know a trap when ya see it, and regardless what people think of my survivin' skills, I'm _not_ just another dead girl. I can read the signs."

Merle laughed out loud and Beth shushed him. "Sorry. Sorry" His brother said, and Daryl could hear his steps toward the door. "Who taught ya?"

"Taught me what?" She asked and Daryl backed away some more.

"How to read the signs?" Merle asked then laughed again. Daryl could only picture the blush that took over her face.

At that moment, Merle stepped out of the cell and locked eyes with his brother. There was a moment of shock, but quickly covered up with a smirk and wink. He walked past him and clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"That one's just ready for the pickin', baby brother. She'd do just about anythin' ya ask her to."

"I wouldn't—"

"Oh, I know, but I'm tellin' ya, this is your shot, boy."

Daryl felt the tips of his ears heat up, and he tried to shake it off.

"There ain't no sense in tryin' to be noble. A girl wants ya, ya want her back."

Merle took a step past him, and Daryl decided to ignore him talking about Beth and all those unnamed feelings balling up in his chest. "Ya ain't gonna do shit, are ya?" He asked before Merle turned the corner.

"Not today." He caught his eye and kept walking.

Daryl heard all the words that went unspoken, though, and he decided real quick that maybe it was time to return the favor and keep an eye on his brother.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. 2

Let's see where this goes, shall we?

Unedited. Sorry for any glaring mistakes.

* * *

They were all gathered around the tables in the dining area of the prison, and Beth watched closely as Daryl leaned against the far wall next to Merle.

The past couple of days, he hadn't even tried to find her for their usual lessons. She had heard Merle talking to someone outside her cell after he left, and figured it must have been Daryl by the way he had been acting around her. Embarrassment coursed through her veins when she thought about what he might have heard.

She should have known that he was just being kind, but the crush she had got even bigger once he started making time just for her. He was such a nice man, and he had the best grin when he let his guard down and actually showed it.

He probably looked at her and thought she was some too young, love-struck teenager. It was true, there was an age gap, but hell, she had grown up more in the last two years than most people did in their twenties before the turn. Still, everyone treated her like she was their little lady. They didn't mind that Carl, who was at least four years younger than her, carried a gun and used it, or that he was viewed as a more skilled protector than her.

That part was true, but she had value, and she knew things.

It was her that had broken up the fight between Merle and Glenn the other day. She wasn't scared of guns or walkers. Beth was scared of being ill prepared, and that's what everyone was making her by pretending she was too soft to learn how to take care of herself. She also wanted to know that she was able to protect Judith if things went downhill.

"The Governor wants Michonne," Rick said and brought her out of her thoughts. "That was the deal he put on the table when we met. I shoulda told ya, but I couldn't. I wanted to hand her over and save us, but I don't think that's gonna help us in the end. We all know that this has to be a group decision. I ain't gonna be makin' 'em for us. I'm not your governor."

Everyone's eyes subtly shifted to Michonne, who was sitting on the stairs.

The silence stretched until Merle opened his mouth and said, "Take her there and make it a trap." Beth watched as Michonne cut her eyes at Merle and he smirked. "What? Ain't like ya don't want a shot at his ass. Let me take ya to him, and we'll kill him."

"He won't show up alone," Rick said, shaking his head.

"Then we don't either," Merle said and shrugged. "One of y'all can be our sharpshooter."

"I could do it," Carol said quietly. Merle looked over at her, and something flickered in his eyes, causing Beth to wonder if she wasn't the only one harboring a crush.

"See, Carol's got the balls for the job." She rolled her eyes at him and his grin widened. He definitely had a crush, Beth decided.

"Only way this goes down is if I go with ya," Daryl said, and Beth's heart dropped.

"Don't need your ass there," Merle said.

"Ya ain't gonna get the all clear otherwise."

"Who died and made you boss, Darylina?"

A sudden idea rushed through Beth's thoughts, and she started talking before she even registered what she was doing. "This plan isn't gonna work. You and Daryl are too threatenin'. He'll know y'all _can_ and _want_ to kill him. What if y'all hide out with Carol for support, but I take Michonne down?"

Everyone got real quiet and stared at her for a moment.

"Absolutely not," Maggie said with a strength she hadn't heard since she'd been back from Woodbury. "You're not goin' anywhere near him."

"It's a good idea," Beth argued. "He'll think we're tryin' to make this all go away, and do it the least confrontational way possible. If it's Merle, he's likely to kill him just for bein' Merle. And if Daryl goes, he'll want to kill him for bein' Merle's brother and for what happened at Woodbury. We can't send you and Glenn for obvious reasons. Carl is smart, but he's also a little jumpy," she looked to Carl and gave him an apologetic smile. "And Rick, if ya go, y'all will end up in a battle of words that might end with guns bein' drawn."

Rick shook his head. "Makes sense for Hershel to go, but not you."

"Michonne said he had a daughter," she reasoned. "A little blonde girl. Maybe if me and daddy go together, he'll think of his own child and be so thrown off that he won't even notice when the bullets start flyin'."

"I vote no," Maggie said. "We leave here and don't look back." Then she walked into the cellblock.

Glenn looked between them all and sighed. "I vote with Maggie." Then he trailed after her.

Rick looked over the group and said, "It's got merit."

"Ya've gotta be kiddin' me," Daryl gritted out.

"No," Rick said quietly. "If her and Hershel take Michonne, it will throw him long enough for us to get the advantage. We might even kill him and few others."

"I can do this," Beth said firmly.

Daryl pushed off the wall and walked toward the tables where everyone was. "Ya've done lost your damned mind," he said to her. "Ya don't have a clue what you're gettin' yaself into. He ain't gonna see ya as an innocent or stop. He's gonna see Michonne and how we sent our two weakest to lead the charge. He'll know somethin's wrong right off the bat."

Beth flinched back and looked down at her hands. She knew that she wasn't as good as the others yet, but hearing Daryl call her weak hurt.

"I could-"

"Ya ain't," he said and stood in front of her table then turned back to Rick. "Me and Merle take her or we come up with a different plan."

Rick shook his head. "It ain't up to you. It goes to a vote."

"Got two 'no' votes already, me and Merle make four. Who else says 'no' to Beth and Hershel gettin' put in the middle of shit?"

Slowly, Michonne and Carol raised their hands, followed by Carl.

"Who votes for them goin'?"

Beth, Hershel and Rick all raised their hands.

"the 'no' vote wins." Daryl looked at Beth. "Your ass stays."

Angry tears filled her eyes as she stood up.

"Screw you, Daryl," she said and flipped him off before she walked away and into the cellblock.

* * *

Daryl swallowed the lump in his throat as she left. This was the best option, and knowing that she would be out of harm's way, helped him control the urge to follow after her.

"No one's goin'," Rick said and Daryl turned toward him. "We let the meetin' time pass, and we'll create a trap here. Let 'em come, and we'll take 'em out that way."

Everyone but Daryl and Merle nodded in agreement, and then they started coming up with a plan. A couple of minutes passed before Carol went and got Maggie and Glenn who were helping with strategy while Merle and Daryl stood off to the side again.

"I do believe I'm gonna go and take a piss," Merle said and started for the outside door.

Daryl watched him go and looked over at the high window as the sunlight streamed through. The meeting was supposed to happen today around noon. They didn't have much time after that until the Governor would be knocking down their gates because they didn't show.

He shifted his bow over his shoulders and followed Merle outside, and they both walked down the gravel driveway, unlocked the gates that didn't even have a person on guard duty yet, and after locking back up, they started toward the woods.

"Got a plan?" Daryl asked after they had been walking for a while.

Merle shrugged. "Not really. Been thinkin' about gettin' a drink, maybe guidin' a shitload of walkers to the meetin' place."

Daryl nodded. "Couldn't hurt."

They walked on in silence until they found a bar with a few stragglers wandering around. Merle broke in a stole a bottle of whiskey as Daryl hotwired the only car in the lot. Once they were inside, Merle cranked up the radio as rock music blared from the speakers thanks to an old tape.

"Not too sure this is a good idea," Daryl muttered before taking a big gulp. "Gettin' lit before goin' and facin' off with this asshole."

Merle snorted before taking the bottle back. Walkers were gathered around the car, trying to get inside and tear off their skin, but the sight didn't make either one of them cringe.

After a couple of minutes, Merle started to slowly drive forward, and they would pass the bottle back and forth. Eventually, Merle turned down the music a little and turned to face Daryl.

"You were real insistent that blondie stay back."

Daryl choked and the whiskey burned the back of his throat and up his nose. After some hacking coughs, he glared at Merle. "She don't belong out here in this shit."

"She don't," Merle agreed. "Ya can't protect her forever. Sooner or later, she's gonna have to get her hands dirty."

"Well, it ain't gonna be today."

Merle took a drink and passed the bottle back. "Why don't ya just fuck her already and get it outta your system."

He punched his brother's shoulder and Merle laughed. "It ain't like that asshole. She don't need to be with someone like me."

"What the fuck's wrong with ya?" Merle asked. "She'd be lucky to have your ass."

Daryl just shook his head. "What the fuck's gotten into you? Ya startin' to get soft on me?"

Merle shot him a look of pure disdain before he said, "Ya damn well know I ain't, but I'm about sick of this shit out here. All these people lookin' down on me and lookin' down on you. There ain't nothin' wrong with ya, baby brother. Not a damn thing."

"No one ever said there was," he said as Merle continued to barely move down the road, collecting more walkers as they went.

"Ya should go for it. Just walk right up to her and plant one on her."

"Yeah, I'm sure her daddy'd love that," he muttered and kicked the seat back.

"What's the problem?" Merle asked. "'Cause you're older than her? She a virgin or some bullshit, and you afraid you're gonna dirty her up?"

Daryl could feel the heat in his cheeks, but he kept his eyes closed. "She deserves someone as good as she is."

Merle grunted, and Daryl heard the empty whiskey bottle hit the floorboard. "That's fuckin' bullshit."

Daryl ignored him and tossed his hand out toward the windshield, the warm buzz of the whiskey swimming through his veins. "Just drive, asshole."

* * *

The walkers descended upon the old feed plant, and Daryl and Merle watched from the safety of their car as the pack of thirty or so walkers come up on the men that were there. It was another reason, in an already long list, as to why he was going to end up in hell, but Daryl didn't really care about the men that the Governor had brought with him.

They didn't watch long before Merle turned the car around and started back toward the prison.

"Won't be long before he starts headin' our way," Merle said and pressed the gas harder.

"Nah, but I'm sure they've already got a plan in place. We just gave 'em some more time to get it together," Daryl mumbled. The whiskey was a lot heavier on his stomach than it ever had been before, and he wondered how Merle never got messed up like that.

"Ya gonna blow chunks, Darla?" Merle asked with a laugh.

"Fuck off. I'm fine," he lied and leaned the seat back again.

"Ya'd really be fine if ya let that blonde have a go," he said as he started to hit the brakes rhythmically, making Daryl's stomach roll.

"Even if she wanted a go, I couldn't." Daryl started reaching his arms out to hit Merle, but he kept moving out of the way.

"Why the hell not? Your pecker stop workin'?"

Merle howled with laughter as Daryl shot up and started hitting his shoulder and arm as hard as he could. "Shut your fuckin' mouth. Hershel'd kill me."

"He don't give a fuck," Merle argued.

"Whatever," Daryl said and threw his arm over his eyes again, the sunlight was really getting to him. "Just get us back to the prison. We got shit to do, and I gotta eat somethin'."

"You're a fuckin' lightweight."

He ignored that, and allowed his thoughts to drift to Beth.

She was a sweet girl—woman—he reminded himself. There wasn't anything girly about her anymore except for how she decorated her cell, and that was stuff she made for Judith.

He remembered what she had said to Merle the other day about knowing how good he was, and he had to admit that it made him puff up a little at the thought that someone like her could want someone like him.

Maybe, one day, when shit settled down, they could see what was between them, but it just wasn't the right time. The Governor was breathing down their necks, and they were preparing for another hard winter.

"I'mma get that girl one day," he mumbled through a hazy fog.

Merle patted his shoulder. "Ya sure are, baby brother."


	3. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

Thanks so much for the response to the last chapter!

I think we're all a little tightly strung right now, so I hope this update helps a some :)

Unedited.

* * *

"Where've y'all been?" Rick asked as he pulled open the gate for them.

"Around," Merle answered and slung his arm over Daryl's shoulder.

Daryl squinted up at Rick and watched as he looked between them. "Are y'all _drunk_?"

Merle laughed, "I ain't. He is." Daryl pushed his brother off of him and tried to walk in a straight line back to the cellblock. He wasn't bad off, but an empty stomach and half a bottle of whiskey didn't mix. "We went to the meetin' place with a bunch of dead ones. We'll have until tomorrow, I imagine."

"I can't believe y'all. Beth told me y'all would go there, and I told her she was overreactin', but she knew. Wanna explain that to me and Hershel?"

Daryl turned his head a little to look at Rick who was glaring down Merle. He held his hands up. "Oh no, no, no, Officer Friendly. It ain't me."

His gaze whipped around to Daryl who shrugged. "I've been helpin' her with some shit," he said and kept on walking.

He needed to get away from everyone for just a little while, and then prepare for what was coming up. They had bigger problems to worry about than Beth and him.

* * *

"Ya really think I'd go after her?" Merle asked with a snort. "Anyone with fuckin' eyes can see how those two stare at each other when they think no one's lookin'."

Rick stopped and turned around to face him fully. "Whatdaya mean?"

Since he had been back in this prison, Merle noticed that everyone seemed to have on blinders when it came to everyone else.

The moment he got to the prison with Daryl and things had settled down a little, he saw how Beth looked at his brother, how she always tried to talk to him or seek him out. A few days after they showed up, Daryl started spending a good bit of time around Beth, and they were both gone at the same time a whole lot.

At first, he thought his brother had been nailing the farmer's daughter, but he quickly found out that it was all innocent. Then when he went to her cell, hoping to catch his brother in there with her, he just found her and her kind smile with a mouthful of unwanted advice.

"It ain't nothin' yet," Merle said and shrugged. "And if it was, it ain't no one's business but theirs."

"I trust Daryl," Rick said with a nod. "If somethin's goin' on, it ain't 'cause he's forcin' it. Hell, if she manages to get him to do anythin', I'd be surprised."

They stood there for a several seconds before Merle said, "They just need a little push."

"Ya should leave it alone," Rick said and turned back to the prison. "We got other stuff to worry about right now."

"There's always a reason _not_ to do somethin'," Merle said and continued on, thinking of different ways he could get things started between his brother and the blonde princess.

* * *

"Go away," she said when he stepped into her cell. She was sharpening her knife, well, it had been his brother's knife, but now it stayed on her hip. No one else noticed, or at least, they didn't mention it.

"Well, hello to you, too, sunshine," he said sarcastically and sat down on her bottom bunk. "Where's the baby?"

"Carol's got her," she said and sheathed her knife before turning in her chair to face him. "What do ya want?"

Merle shrugged and touched the construction paper ladybug on her wall. "Ya wanna bone my brother, ya should really redecorate. A man likes to know he's with a woman, and you're room screams little girl."

Beth flushed bright red and slapped his hand away from her wall. "Those are for Judith, ya asshole. And I don't wanna _bone_ your brother. Who even says that?"

"Ya wanna jump his dick," he said easily and watched her eyes widened.

"Get out, Merle," she said and pointed to the cell door.

"Just tellin' ya, he ain't gonna make the first move. Ya want him? You're gonna have to be the one to do the work." He said and stood up, walking to a little garden gnome on the corner of her desk. "This shit's just weird, Greene."

Her heard her huff behind him as he eased out of her cell and toward the ledge that overlooked the bottom level of the cellblock. Everyone was running all over, preparing for their great ambush plan, and he was walking around the prison like he wasn't supposed to be there at all.

No one really paid him any attention, so he sat down on the stairs and watched them scurrying around like little ants.

"You've got one good hand and two good legs," Carol said from behind him.

"Got somethin' else that works, too, if you're interested," he said with a smirk.

"I'll pass," she said and sat down beside him. "If ya could help pack up some stuff or move some pallets, that'd be good, though. Everyone here is doin' somethin', and you're here now, so it's your turn to put forth some effort."

"I just made sure we had some extra time to prepare, woman."

"And get buzzed and get your brother, who hasn't had a drink in over a year, drunk. Ya've reached your quota for stupid shit today, Merle Dixon. It's time to be productive."

She stood up, and he followed after her, not really knowing the reason why. She was feisty and busted his balls when no one else would. He liked Carol. She was a good woman, but he knew that from before.

And so, he spent his afternoon, carrying pallets, barring doors, creating the perfect trap for the Governor's men, when he normally would have sat on the stairs and watched as the day passed, and he blended into the background.

* * *

The plan went off without a hitch.

That was lie. They were one guard tower short now.

The Governor, and what was left of his men, had run off, but based on what they had found after they followed them, it was pretty clear that he wasn't going back to Woodbury.

They bussed back the remaining Woodbury residents along with all the food in about two days, and once everyone was settled a little, him and Daryl went with Michonne to hunt the Governor.

After the trail went cold, Daryl and him stopped. She had revenge written all over her, though, and there wasn't a damn thing in the world that would stop Michonne from getting it and making him suffer for what he had done to Andrea.

Merle spent a good portion of the next week watching the new residents and getting a feel for them. Most of them were older, but there were some families with smaller kids, too. A few teenage boys that had managed to get out of the attack by playing sick or actually working the wall at Woodbury. They pledged their loyalty to Rick the moment he showed them what their leader had done.

Even though he understood the need to look to someone for guidance, but he had never been good about following. It was like there was a switch flipped inside his brain that always made him go the opposite way he was told. He didn't understand it, but he never questioned the compulsion either.

To kill time, he worked on fortifying the fences with the others and watching Daryl side-step Beth. It got downright funny to watch his brother tuck-tail and walk the opposite direction when the youngest Greene started their way.

When he got tired of all the dancing around, he caught his brother by the arm and said, "Quit bein' such a pussy. Ya gotta girl droolin' after ya, and you're gonna let one of those Woodbury boys take a shot at her."

Merle watched as Daryl clenched his fists. "Why do ya care so much anyway?"

"Ain't got nothin' else to do."

Daryl huffed and walked further down the fence, hitting his shoulder against Merle's as he passed him. They worked hard for few minutes before one of the other men along the fence whistled under his breath and caught nearly everyone's attention.

Merle turned his head to see what him and the other Woodbury boys were looking at, and caught the shine of blonde hair as Beth walked across the open prison yard, carrying Judith toward where her father sat.

"She's hot," one man said, only to get punched in the shoulder by another guy around Beth's age.

"Nah, she's beautiful," the kid said and stared her down with puppy dog eyes.

Merle snorted and turned back to work, only to see Daryl staring at the kid who was mooning over Beth.

"I wonder if she's with anybody," he said and leaned against his piece of rebar.

"Wouldn't hurt to ask," Merle said with a shrug. The kid looked over at him and grinned. He felt a little twinge of guilt for a brief second before it vanished as Daryl stomped off toward the cellblock.

The kid went back to work, but Merle kept his eye on Daryl and how Beth handed off Judith and followed after him.

"Boys, y'all kept the fences safe for a minute. I gotta check some shit out."

No one questioned him. They never would. He chuckled to himself, waving his knife hand over his shoulder at them as he took off.

Inside the prison, he quietly walked down to Beth's cell. He got right next to it before he caught heated whispers, and he peeked around the edge of the wall.

As soon as he did, Beth wrapped her arms around his brother's neck and kissed him a whole lot harder than he ever though she could.

Daryl stood frozen in place for about two seconds before he kicked himself into gear and started kissing her back, pushing her back toward the desk.

"Who'd've thought ya were a peepin' Tom?"

Merle jumped and almost tripped over his own feet trying to straighten up. Immediately, he motioned for Carol to follow him so they wouldn't mess up what was going on in Beth's cell.

Once they were a good distance away, Carol nudged his side. "So, why were ya bein' sneaky?"

Merle shrugged. "Been tryin' to set 'em up since we got back. My brother's got a thick fuckin' skull, though."

"_You_ played matchmaker?" She asked, her face bunched up in confusion.

"Fuck no," he said and looked away.

Carol laughed and it made him want to smile, but he held it back.

"Who'd've thought." She reached and grabbed his forearm, squeezing once before letting go. "That was a good thing you did there."

He grunted and went back to work along the fence, trying to ignore the weird ache he felt in the middle of his chest.


	4. Chapter 4

Ch. 4

Thank y'all so much for reading and reviewing!

{{{hugs}}} Tomorrow's the day!

* * *

Merle expected them to keep it a secret and sneak around like any other atypical pairing, but much to his disappointment, Daryl sought out Hershel Greene and laid it all out on the table two days after it started. He told him about his innocent crush that morphed into something bigger and unexpected, that he would never disrespect Beth or lay a hand on her, and that he would protect her until his dying breath.

Well, what he had managed to get out ended up meaning those things, but his brother was a man of very few words and none of them were flowery bullshit, so the real conversation had been a lot shorter.

Hershel took the news pretty well for a conservative, old codger.

First thing he asked was if she was knocked up. Daryl had almost swallowed his tongue trying to choke out that "no" answer.

In the end, Hershel had sighed and tapped his fingers on his desk. "You're a good man," he had said. "Maggie won't like it."

Merle knew all of this, not because Daryl took him for backup, but because he had taken to ease dropping on things he felt were interesting.

It was damn prison for fuck's sake. There was only so much to do in a given day, and he wasn't like his brother, who was practically a damn squirrel for all the time he spent in the woods around them.

Hershel had been right, too.

Maggie had pitched a fucking fit when Beth told her, but she had managed to calm her down and pull her away. That was why Merle was surprised to see Maggie storming down the driveway to the fence where Daryl and him had been clearing off walkers.

She let into him as soon as she got close enough, calling him all sorts of names. Daryl stood there and took it for a while, and when she saw he wasn't going to holler back, she got real quiet and stared him down.

"Aren't ya gonna say somethin'?"

Daryl shrugged. "Don't really think it's any of your damn business, to be honest."

"She's my sister," she said like it should have been some kind of magic phrase to get him talking.

"Yeah," Daryl agreed and went back to slamming the pole through walker heads with a lot more force than before.

"What do ya have to offer her? Ya can't even hold a conversation!" She huffed and threw her hands up in the air. Then Merle saw something click on her eyes, and she pointed a finger at his back. "Are ya bribin' her? Ya keep her safe if she keeps your bed warm for ya?"

Daryl tensed up and dropped the pole to ground before turning around and looking her dead in the eyes.

Merle saw the pure fury simmering under the surface. He knew that kind of anger. It had gotten him into trouble many times, so he kept himself at the ready to step in. He might have been an asshole, but he knew better than to let his brother do something he would come to regret.

"Ya really think I'd do that to her? Use her like that?" He took a few steps forward but stopped short of where she was.

"You're twice her age. What am I supposed to think?" She shouted at him, and Daryl clenched his hands into fists.

"If that's what ya think, I guess that's just what ya think." He muttered as he side-stepped her and started walking toward the prison.

"What're ya lookin' at?" Her voice was tight as a bowstring when she finally looked to Merle. "You're trash," she said in a sure voice. "Families tend to be cut from the same cloth so I can only assume the same about him."

Merle hummed and nodded. "Well, you're theory's got a hole in it. Beth ain't a judgmental bitch, and y'all are kin."

She flinched. "It's just a matter of time before he shows his true colors."

"And what're they?"

"Bein' like you," she said in a harsh whisper.

Merle chewed on his bottom lip then said, "I did some pretty questionable shit when I's with the Governor and even before that. If that's what's got ya all worked up over Daryl gettin' with your sister, stop. He ain't me. Never has been." He paused. "Didn't say it before, but I'm sorry for what happened to ya 'cause of me."

She didn't look convinced at all, and he wasn't surprised when she turned from him and went back up the yard toward their cellblock.

He didn't let it bother him too much as he went back to thinning out the walkers along the fence. Merle did worry about Daryl, though. If Maggie pushed too much, he would back off Beth faster than they could blink.

He hoped Beth was ready to put up a fight.

* * *

She heard his heavy boots walking down the corridor and smiled to herself.

They were settling in pretty well in her opinion. Her daddy had been supportive and didn't make a scene about it. Maggie had been a tougher sell, but after a few hours of talking several days in a row, she had left Beth's cell with a quiet resignation earlier.

The rest of the group didn't care one way or the other.

Everything had been great so far, and he was so present when they were together.

Daryl might not have been a naturally affectionate man, but she could tell that he had feelings for her. When he was teaching her a little something about fighting, his hands would linger on her shoulders or her hips. He smiled a lot more than before. Not full blown, show his teeth smiles, but little grins where the corner of his mouth would quirk up.

After his watch the last two nights, he stopped by her cell before going off to his own. Beth wanted to ask him to stay with her, but she didn't think he was ready for that yet, even if it was just sleeping side-by-side.

Beth finished folding up Judith's blanket right as he walked through her door. Her eyes met his, and she knew instantly something had happened.

"What's wrong?"

He shook his head and looked at his feet. "This ain't gonna work."

"What ain't?" Beth knew the answer, though, and her heart started racing as she clutched at the blanket she was still holding.

"Whatever the fuck this is," he said as he motioned between them. "'M sorry."

Before she could speak he walked out, leaving her staring at the spot he had just been standing. She let out a small gasp of air as her heart broke then sat aside Judith's blanket and sat heavily in the chair next to her desk.

Just this morning before he went off to the fence, he had mentioned her going hunting with him later, and now he was backing off?

Beth shook her head and stood up.

There was no way she was going to let him call everything off without him giving her a real reason. She stood up and started out the door right as Maggie walked in.

"I don't really have time right now," she said and tried to go around her, but Maggie blocked her exit. "Seriously, move."

"I went and talked to Daryl. I think I got this all straightened out for ya," she said, her voice full of conviction.

Beth rolled her eyes and laughed humorlessly. "Well, thank ya for screwin' stuff up. I'm off to try and fix it again."

"You can do better than him, Beth."

She stood up tall and met her sister's eyes. Beth knew that she meant well, that she was trying to look out for her, but treating her like a child was getting old.

"Ya don't know him like I do," Beth said quietly. "And ya don't deserve to know the kindness that he has if ya pass judgment so quick. You take care of you, and I'll take care of me, okay?"

Maggie shook her head. "When ya make the wrong decisions, I have to step in."

"No, if I was makin' the wrong decision, it would be up to me to get out of it. If I was makin' a bad decision, then daddy woulda voiced his concern. Just leave it alone, Maggs. Let me see where this goes for us."

"I don't like it," she said in a huff.

"Ya don't have to," Beth said with a sigh. "Don't go near him about this again. There's only so many times a person can hear they're not good enough before they really start believin' it."

That made Maggie's shoulders slump a little as guilt settled over her features. She didn't say anything else as Beth walked through the door and turned to the right.

She had her knife at her hip, and figured that he didn't have too much of a head start on her. She dodged all the others that lived in the prison as she made her way out a side door and then down to the first gate. She slipped through and waved to Merle as he stared her down.

"That way?" She asked when she got close enough. He nodded his head and killed the last two walkers that had been pushed up against the fence. "How many where along the fence when he went out?"

"Ten," he answered and propped the pole against the chain link.

"He's pretty upset," she said and looked to the woods.

"He'll be even more pissed if ya head out that way lookin' for him, too."

Beth smiled and slid the gate open just enough to get out before pulling it back into place. "Lock up," she said. "I'm goin' huntin'."

Merle snorted and put the carabineers in place. She could feel his eyes on her until she disappeared from view and into the trees.

* * *

It didn't take her long to find Daryl. He wasn't hunting like he was supposed to be doing; he was sitting on the ground, back to a tall pine tree.

"So," she said quietly, and he tilted his head up. "Wanna tell me why ya broke up with me?"

He flushed and looked away. "Just think ya deserve better's all."

Beth sighed and sat down beside him. "Daryl, I'm old enough to decide what I want, and I want _you_. I think you're amazin'. You're sweet and kind, but ya look at me sometimes like I'm somethin' ya'd like to eat right up." That caused his ears to turn even redder. "I don't mind that at all. In fact, if ya're up for it..." Beth bumped her shoulder with his.

"Beth, girl, I don't got good blood. I'm bound to do somethin' real stupid one day."

"And when that happens, we'll figure out how to get past it. Besides," she said and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Merle thinks we'd be perfect together, and I'm sure he's right."

"Merle ain't never been right about anythin'," he scoffed but tilted his head against hers.

"He's right about this," she whispered and turned her face towards him. Daryl didn't say anything else, but he didn't need words when he used his lips like that.


	5. Chapter 5

Ch. 5

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!

I'll be updating this fic on Wednesdays and Sundays from now until complete.

Side note: Several weeks have passed between Ch. 4 and Ch. 5.

Enjoy!

* * *

Merle paced the prison yard, watching as Rick tilled a fucking garden.

Months ago, he had said that he was a damned mystery to himself, but now, he was pretty sure Rick was in the same boat. The man had put down his gun—refused to carry the damn thing. Merle thought it was the stupidest decision ever, and he had seen and done a lot of dumb shit in his time.

"I know he's attractive, but I don't think he's gonna like you like that," Carol said as she walked up beside him.

He cut his eyes at her and paused in his walking. "Ya ain't nearly as funny as ya think ya are."

She shrugged and the corner of her lip twitched up.

Over the last few weeks, him and Carol talked a lot more. Most of the time it was trading barbs, but they had serious moments, too. Those usually brought on uncomfortable feelings that made his skin feel too tight.

One of those moments happened a few days before when she had cleaned and wrapped his arm because his stump had gotten raw from the knife appendage.

She talked the whole time about shit he already knew. How she had stopped going to the hospital after they looked at her with nothing but pity in their eyes. How if he ever got a broken rib or dislocated shoulder, she could fix him right up.

Then she looked him in the eyes and started talking right to him. Carol asked him if he liked her hair, and when he nodded, she told him what the inmate that had been killed in the Governor's first attack on the prison had thought about it.

_"He thought I was a lesbian," she laughed humorlessly. "Do you know why my hair was so short when we met?"_

_Merle swallowed hard and held her stare, sensing she was testing him in some way. "Ya got your hair buzzed off to keep that asshole ya married from grabbin' somethin' when ya tried to get away."_

_Carol nodded. "He got a hold of it once and yanked a handful out. One of the most painful things ever." She paused. "I'd like to think if he came through that door right now and told me to come on, I'd tell him to go to hell."_

_"He wouldn't make it through the damn door," Merle muttered and hopped off the table. "Thanks," he said as he walked past her._

_"Keep the knife off for a couple of days."_

_Merle nodded but didn't look at her until he was at the door then he turned around and saw her leaning against the table with her shoulders slumped._

_"I can't remember a time my old man didn't beat the hell outta my momma. She tried to leave, too, but she had me, then Daryl came along, and she was trapped for a whole lot longer. It killed her in the end. She had a fuckin' concussion and passed out with a cigarette hanging from her lips. Took down the whole house._

_"Pops was at a bar and Daryl was out trailin' after the neighborhood kids. I got there right after him. I ain't never heard someone scream like he did that day." Carol had lifted her head but still faced away from him. "Some people get trapped and can't do shit about it."_

_"I got away," she whispered. "Went to a shelter in Atlanta with Sophia." When she turned to face him, she looked so sad. "I lasted three days before I ran back to him and took my daughter back to that life. She deserved better than me."_

_Merle shook his head. "Ya both deserved better than the man ya got. I saw ya with her, remember? She thought the sun rose and set with ya."_

_"Then I lost her." She shook her head._

_"Ya didn't lose her," he argued. "Bad shit happened s'all."_

_"Your brother looked for her more than I did."_

_"Ya didn't know what to look for."_

_Carol looked away. "This is the only family I got now. I'll protect 'em better this time."_

_"You're a hell of a shot," he agreed._

_That made her smile a little. "Daryl taught me."_

_Merle hummed and chewed on the inside of this cheek before he said, "He was pretty happy to get ya back when they all thought ya were walker food."_

_"He's a good guy."_

_"Y'all ever..." He trailed off and waggled his eyebrows, trying to make it seem like more of a joke than being something serious to him. Hell, he didn't even know why it felt like he needed to know._

_"No," Carol laughed. "He's my friend. the first real male friend I've ever had." She sighed. "I'm holdin' you up. Besides, I got story time with the kids now."_

_Carol slid beside him and out the door and he followed her until they reached the library then went on toward his cell._

Even know, standing beside her in the middle of the yard, he didn't know what to make of the tension under their interactions.

He had known women, and most of them were very up front about what they wanted. And he was happy to give them that. There had been a few relationships over the years, but none of them stuck. As soon as a woman started nagging him about shit, he was out.

All that old stuff didn't compare to the concern and genuine care he felt for Carol, though.

"So, your brother brought back some rabbits," she said, and he turned away from her, afraid she could see the confusion he felt when they were together.

"He should've by now," Merle muttered. "Takes that girl with him out in the woods and ya know they ain't trackin' a damn thing."

Carol laughed and bumped her shoulder against his arm. "Be happy for him."

"I'm his brother. It's my job to be an asshole to him about the woman he's with, and since this is the first time Darla's been saddled, I gonna give him as much hell as I want."

Carol rolled her eyes. "I think it's just the Dixon in you."

Merle grinned and tilted his head. "Ya want some Dixon in ya?"

Her choked laugh came with a shake of her head. "You must've been a ladies man before all this."

He shrugged. "I've got a rugged quality about me."

After another snort, she touched his arm and nodded to the little shaded rest area they had built up. "Help me cook the rabbits?"

"I guess," he said and followed after her, trying to recall the last time he went so easily with anyone besides Daryl.

* * *

Daryl lay in bed, unable to move out from underneath the covers. Beth was so damn warm wrapped around him that it made it hard for him to want to do anything but stay put.

She hadn't wasted any time moving her little bit of stuff into his cell and using her old one for when she kept Judith during the day.

Her little accident sign looked a whole lot better than the kiddy shit from before and the darker curtain she had hung over their bars kept it more private. He liked it, liked her there with him.

Daryl stretched a little and tried to move her off of him, but she held on tighter.

"Don't go," she whispered. "Let's just stay here in this little room all day."

"Can't do that, arrow. I'm runnin' lead with Michonne. It's a big job."

"I know." She yawned and slid off his chest. "It sounds real dangerous."

"Ehhh." He slung his legs off the bed and leaned his forearms on his knees. Beth curled around him, planting a few soft kisses on his back. "'Bout like every other day." He picked up her hand off his chest and kissed her palm.

He stood up and pulled on his sleeveless flannel shirt then his jacket and vest. Beth had laid back against their pillow and watched him get ready to leave.

Things had changed a whole hell of a lot since that day in the woods. He knew every single inch of her body like it was the back of his own hand, and she had done plenty of exploring, too. She kissed his back, and her fingers running over the scars there didn't bother him at all anymore.

They had yet to close the deal, so to speak, and that's another reason he was going on the run. He needed condoms and he would be damned if he went and asked Glenn for a few or anyone else.

Beyond that, he was teaching her how to track and hunt, and she was getting a whole lot better than he had ever imagined. They been out in the woods the other day, and she was the one who caught the slight disturbance in the leaves that led them to one of the rabbits they had killed.

She would joke and tell him that she wouldn't need him anymore, and he would stand behind her and nod where she couldn't see. Beth was right. Before too long, she wouldn't need his help at all.

He watched her sit up and scoot off the bed then grab her jeans and pull them up her legs. Daryl shifted a little and watched from behind his hair as she tugged on her boots, taking in every movement.

"Is Merle goin' with ya?" She asked as she tied her hair back.

"Nah. That thing's done messed up his arm again. Carol ain't lettin' him wear it, so he ain't goin' out."

"I don't like it when ya go out without him," she said and sighed.

"Why?" He asked and picked up his bow.

"I dunno. I think y'all work better in a pair, I guess."

He snorted and leaned back against the bars of the cell. "I got Michonne, Glenn, Tyreese and Sasha all there watchin' my back and me watchin' theirs. Even that Woodbury kid's comin'."

"The one that asks ya what ya did before everythin' went to hell?"

Daryl hummed and looked her over as she put on her belt that held her knife. "He's got a big crush on ya," he said without really meaning to.

Beth's head shot up and her eyes were wide. "Really? Oh my gosh, I've been waitin' for this day," she said and started walking toward the cell door and he caught her arm and pulled her to his chest. "You're crazy if ya think that I'd trade ya for someone else," she whispered.

Daryl kissed the top of her head and stayed quiet. He didn't think there would ever be a time that he didn't feel like she was going to disappear from beside him.

"I's thinkin' that I could go check the snares while you're gone. That way ya ain't go so much to do when ya get back."

He shrugged. "If ya want to or we can go once I get back."

Beth leaned back and rose up on her tiptoes to kiss him. "I'll just do it. I wanna try out my new bow."

"Ya be careful," he said seriously and squeezed her in a tight hug before he let her go.

"You, too."

* * *

The Big Spot was a bust.

They had spent so much fucking time getting all the walkers out of the triage area that had been set up and the store itself, but there had been a ton of those bastards on the fucking roof.

Along with a damn helicopter.

_What the fuck?_

Michonne parked the truck in the prison yard, and Daryl got out as soon as it stopped. He tried ease some of the tension in his shoulders, but he couldn't. All he could think about was that fucking store. He had been walking through, picking up shit and putting it in his pack. He got things on everyone's list, and things just for him and Beth.

They hadn't been in the store ten minutes before the ceiling gave way.

Walkers rained down. The chopper was holding on by a thread.

Zach.

That poor damn kid stuck under a shelf full of wine, getting chewed on by a walker.

Daryl walked toward the cellblock, leaving everyone else to decide who was going to tell who what. Once he was outside their cell, he leaned against the bars and watched as she wrote in her journal.

He had meant to get her some more pens, but he hadn't gotten that far.

Beth looked up at him and her breath caught. She knew just from seeing his face. "Who?" She asked quietly and stood up.

"Zach," he said and cleared his throat. The lump there was getting too much to hold back.

Beth walked over to the stupid accident sign and ran her hands over the letters before moving toward him. "Are ya okay?"

He shrugged and looked down. "Just tired of losin' people s'all."

"Me, too," she whispered and wrapped her arms around his waist.

The comfort he was used to getting felt so foreign to him in that moment. It was like the clusterfuck at the store had pushed him all the way back to who he had been before. After a few seconds, he gripped her elbow in his hand, and when she started to pull away, she looked up at him from under her eyelashes.

"It's okay to be sad, Daryl. He was a nice guy."

He shook his head. "I'm glad I knew him. Even if he looked at ya like some puppy dog."

Beth grinned. "Did he ever guess what ya did?"

Daryl shook his head and thought back to the kid's questions and guesses. How he had thought Daryl was some kind of white knight, a good guy, through and through.

"No," he said gruffly.

There was a part of him that was glad that he would never find out.


	6. Chapter 6

Ch. 6

Thank you all so much for reviewing! I'm so sorry I didn't get to answer them!

I hope you like this one, and {{hugs}} to everyone for tonight's episode!

* * *

Beth watched from a distance as Daryl shook the boy's hand. He was probably Carl's age and seemed like a nice enough kid. Beth had seen him around the library for Carol's story time, but he didn't seem like he had a terribly strong stomach for the gore around them. She couldn't blame him. It wasn't something you just rolled with. Everyone had an adjustment period, and some people didn't ever get there. Or sometimes, they saw so much blood and loss that they closed back in and tried to remember what life had been like before killing had become an every day occurrence.

It had been a few days since their run to the Big Spot, and Daryl seemed to be getting better. She was beginning to wonder if he had reached the point where he realized that it wasn't just him he had to worry about anymore. And not in a "I provide food for the group" sort of way, but a "There's a person that loves me and needs me back in one piece" kind of way.

Not that she had told him that yet. It had been nearly three months since they had officially began their relationship, but the flirting and interest had been there for weeks before that. Maggie still wasn't completely on board, but she had told Beth that she didn't need to have any regrets when it came to her relationship because none of them were guaranteed tomorrow.

Beth had taken that advice and held onto it for a couple of days. All the while, she went about her daily routine: caring for Judith, hunting with Daryl, rolling around their tiny bed with him after the sun set.

Beth shook those thoughts away and watched as Carol said something to Daryl that made him cut his eyes at her before walking toward Beth.

"What're ya lookin' at, arrow?" He asked as he took a set beside her, pushing his plate over toward her.

The nickname had come about after a tracking lesson, and she didn't mind it at all. He had been telling her about directions and how to find her bearings in the woods when she didn't have a compass.

"_Ya know, I wanted to get a tattoo of an arrow on my wrist," she said and held out the wrist that was layered in bracelets. _

"_Why?" he asked as he took her arm. Daryl slipped his thumb under the bands to find the scar that puckered her skin. _

"_Ya know, so I could look down at it and remind myself to find my own way," she said with a roll of her eyes. "Guess it's kinda ironic that I've got somethin' there now that reminds me the same thing."_

_His thumb rubbed over the line of skin, and he shook his head before letting her go and pulling her to stand in front of him. He handed her his bow and put both hands on her shoulders. "Put us goin' back the right way, arrow."_

_She laughed and proceeded to get lost in the woods for a couple of hours before finally making her way back to the prison with him in tow._

"You and Carol," she said. "Oh, and Patrick. I think he's got a man crush on ya."

Daryl shook his head. "Ya tryin' to start shit."

"No, I'm really not," she said with a grin. Over his shoulder, she saw Merle walk up beside Carol and start talking to her.

He didn't wear his knife because it was still bothering him, but he seemed to be in good spirits, at least around Carol. He smiled a little when he talked to her, and Beth wondered if Daryl noticed or if Merle talked to him about it.

"Ya know that you're brother helps with story time?" She asked and Daryl nodded. "Ya know it ain't really story time, right?" She asked quieter.

"I know," he said with short nod. "Carol's tryin' to save them kids like she couldn't save Sophia."

"Good," Beth said and took a piece of the deer meat off their plate. "Someone needed to realize these kids need guidance. We can't just ignore it."

"Seriously doubt that those Woodbury parents want to know that Merle and Carol are teachin' them weapons usage durin' readin' time." Daryl said and lowered his head to catch her eyes. "Anybody else know?"

Beth shrugged. "I don't think so. No one else goes that way durin' the day. I only know 'cause Judith was bein' fussy so we were walkin' the other day."

"Carol gonna watch her this afternoon?" He asked and took a thick strip of meat off their plate.

"Yeah," she said and nodded. "She's givin' me a free day since Rick and Carl have been out in the garden so much."

He grunted and tilted his head back toward the fence. "Ya wanna go out?"

"Absolutely." She kissed his cheek quickly and stood up. "I've gotta grab our laundry, but we can leave whenever after that."

"I'll find ya," he said.

Beth tried to see if he would look back up at her, but he didn't. He tried to make himself seem so unaffected around everyone else, but the truth was, Daryl had one of the softest hearts she had ever known.

She hated to think of him as a little boy with the kind of father he had. It was a miracle that he had kept his empathy through that.

As she walked by the grill, she waved to Carol and Merle, smiling to herself a little when she thought of them together. It wasn't official, and she wasn't too sure that either one of them were going to press it into something romantic, but they had seemed to find something in each other, and Beth really loved that.

The world was just awful, but occasionally, there would be little glimpses of good things. What she had with Daryl, Carol and Merle's friendship, Judith's smile, her daddy's understanding, quiet way, Rick and Carl mending things between them, Maggie and Glenn and their love.

Given the fact that, at any moment, the fences could fall and they would be on the run again, life was going pretty well for them. She let the big grin overtake her features as she entered through the prison doors and came face-to-face with her daddy.

"What's got ya lookin' so happy, doodlebug?" For as long as she lived, she would always want him to call her that. She was a complete daddy's girl since the moment she was born, she figured.

"Me and Daryl are gonna go out into the woods."

He paused for a moment then asked, "What're y'all doin' out there?"

Beth laughed, blushed and shook her head all at once. "He's teachin' me how to track and hunt. Ya've seen how good I am with a bow now."

Daryl had set up a target for her to practice with and most evenings, he would sit out there and coach her up. Sometimes her daddy was there, sometimes it was just them. Daryl hadn't really gotten the hang over being around him since he told him about their relationship. It was all new for them.

"I know," he whispered. "So, Daryl's treatin' ya well?"

"Yeah, daddy." She nodded. "He's a sweet man."

"I never thought I'd hear the day someone called Daryl sweet," he said then kissed the top of her head.

"He really is."

He took a step away and went to open the door but stopped. "When did ya grow up, Bethy? It seems like I looked away for just a second, and now, you're all grown."

"Well, the end of the world tends to push things along."

He shook his head. "Nah, ya've always had a good head on your shoulders."

She wanted to argue that and show him her wrist, but she just shrugged instead. At that moment, Daryl walked through the door, almost hitting her dad since he was standing right at it.

"Shit, sorry," he said and helped steady him.

"I'm all right," he said and pressed a hand against the wall. "The strap keeps comin' loose." He pulled up his pants leg and went to mess with the strap, and Beth started to kneel down to look at it, but Daryl beat her to it.

"This is a piece of shit," he muttered and pulled the strap they had attached to it tighter before pulling out his knife and poking another hole in the leather. "We're gonna have to find ya somethin' better than this, Hershel. It ain't gonna cut it if we gotta move fast."

He stood up and her daddy shrugged his shoulders. "Don't really see how we can do much better. It took y'all a while to find this one."

Daryl chewed on his bottom lip for a second. "We just didn't look in the right places."

"These things are specially made, ya know?" He said and placed a hand on Daryl's shoulder. He looked up at her dad from under his hair and nodded. "We take what we can get." Then he looked to Beth before back to Daryl. "Y'all be careful out there."

"Yes, sir," Daryl said almost on instinct, and Beth grinned as he seemed to turn into a teenage boy before prom.

Once her daddy was gone, Daryl took her hand and pulled her along to the laundry room where they collected all their clothes then back to their cell where he just dropped his stuff on the floor, and Beth folded up what little she had an sat it on the desk.

"Ya ready?" He asked. He was chewing his thumbnail and seemed nervous.

"Yeah. Ya okay?"

"Umhm," he said and pointed at her bow. "Get your shit, and let's head out."

"Yes, sir, Mr. Dixon," she said with a laugh and did as he said.

Daryl was already outside the cell when she turned back around, and she trailed after him. Right as he opened the door to the outside, she took his hand in hers and squeezed. "Hey, Daryl?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Things are gonna be just fine," she said, and he turned to face her with a small, unsure grin on his face.

He nodded and led her out, and Beth wondered what had him all twisted up all of sudden.

* * *

"There they go," Carol said and pulled his attention to the gate as she tilted her head toward it. "They spend so much time out there."

"Little brother's comin' back a man from this trip," Merle said with a laugh and a smirk.

Carol scoffed. "You don't know that, and besides, it's none of our business."

"Oh, I know," Merle said and went back to cleaning the grill. "He asked me if I'd ever been with a girl like her."

"Like her?" Carol asked incredulously. "What does that even mean? And you know he told you that in confidence. He doesn't want you goin' around tellin' his business."

Merle rolled his eyes. "I ain't tellin' everyone. I'm tellin' _you_. I wouldn't just say this shit to anyone, you know that," he said and sighed. "And he don't mean shit by 'like her'. He just couldn't get out the word 'virgin'. He can't get the words out sometimes."

"Please, tell me that you actually gave him good, solid advice."

"Yeah, told him to stop bein' such a pussy. If she's really one, it'll hurt a little, but she'll live."

"If she's really one," Carol muttered under her breath before turning to face him fully. "You know that whatever you tell me, I'd never tell a soul. You just admitted that. So, really think about this a minute before you answer. Do you really think it doesn't matter? Or that it makes Daryl less of a man to really care about the comfort of the woman he's bein' intimate with?"

Merle kept scrubbing the grill rack, probably a little harder than necessary as he thought about the answer. He didn't like the pity that crept into her voice when he talked about Daryl and Beth. She thought he brushed it all off with crude humor, but the truth was he didn't get her point-of-view, and he really didn't understand how Daryl had picked up on the little things. Not all of them, but a good many of them.

He swallowed. "I dunno. I don't get it. Who thinks about this shit? It's just fuckin'."

"It's not, though," she argued. "They love each other. It's important and special to both of them."

He tossed down the rag and shook his head. "Why? Just 'cause they attach a feelin' to it, doesn't change the fact that it's still the same as when the feelin' ain't there."

After a few seconds pause, Carol whispered, "You've never been in love."

He looked over at her and it was like a light bulb had flickered on in her eyes.

"Whatever," he said and started to walk away from her. The whole conversation was making him twitchy.

She grabbed his wrist and tugged him to a stop. Had he wanted to, he could have yanked his hand right back and kept walking, but he stopped just like she wanted.

"I'm not pickin' at you, but Merle, it's different."

"Yeah, 'cause ya got so much experience with lovin' relationships."

Carol pulled her hand back and stepped away from him. She pursed her lips for a second before she said, "I was a different person before I met Ed. I know what love can be, and I thought I could change him." She seemed to shake thoughts away as she said, "I won't make the same mistake twice."

Then she walked away and left him standing there.

He ignored the voice in the back of his head that told him to follow her—that told him that she was talking about him.


	7. Chapter 7

Ch. 7

Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing!

Pure Bethyl fluff and smut ahead.

* * *

They walked through the woods quietly, and Beth watched as Daryl scanned the ground for tracks. Something still felt off with him, though. She couldn't put her finger on it, so she pushed it away and went to work looking for tracks, too.

In the next hour, they had killed two rabbits which was really a feat considering how there didn't seem to be many left running around their little section of woods anymore.

She started to ask if they were going to head back to the prison when Daryl cleared his throat and pointed to the east with his arrow. "Wanna show ya somethin' I found the other day."

Beth smiled. "Okay. I'd liked to spend a little more time out here with ya anyway."

Daryl made a humming sound that was his go-to for acknowledging what was said without actually agreeing or disagreeing with it. It was something he did when he had a lot on his mind.

Once she had fallen into step beside him, she wrapped her arm around his and twined their fingers together. "So, how far away is it?"

He shrugged. "Coupla miles."

"Is it a stream or a pond?"

Daryl shook his head.

"A waterfall?"

Again a headshake. "Ain't got nothin' to do with water."

"I'd like to go swimmin'," she said with a wistful sigh. "We had that pond at the farm. Every summer we'd spend hours out there."

Daryl nodded. "Spent a lotta time in a creek near my old man's huntin' cabin when I's little."

"My mom hated it," she admitted. "She was always afraid we'd get bit by a snake."

"It's a damn high possibility," he said, and she could feel him getting a bit more comfortable, so she tried to keep him talking.

"Have ya ever been bit by a snake?" She asked and looked up at him.

"Nah, but I've been close to plenty of 'em. Helps when ya wear boots. Most of 'em bite at your ankles, so it protects ya."

"At least I got on boots now. I don't imagine runnin' around the farm in sandals was a good idea."

"Runnin' around in high grass durin' the summer ain't never a good idea in Georgia. 'Specially if ya wanna avoid snakes."

"Ya know, I've never actually seen a snake," she said and nudged his shoulder.

"Just 'cause ya ain't seen it, didn't mean it wasn't there."

"I know," she said and looked around the woods. "You're really at home out here. Did ya grow up in the woods?" She knew his daddy had a cabin out in them, but she also knew that his momma had died in house fire in a town, so she wasn't sure where he had spent more time growing up. Daryl had given her snippets of his past, but she still lacked the full picture. She wouldn't push it for it either. In some ways, she just wanted to tell him that none of it mattered. He was here, and the past was way back in the before.

"Ya could say that," he said and tugged her behind a tree. He shushed her, and Beth closed her eyes and strained to hear what he had heard. "Walkers," he whispered.

Beth peaked around the trunk and saw them materialize from the trees. She knew she would never be as good as Daryl when it came to hearing approaching animals or walkers. Based on what she knew, though, they were moving the opposite direction of the prison. They waited until the small group of six passed then they kept on their way to Daryl's surprise.

The rest of the trip was filled with silence. Daryl probably keeping an ear out for more walkers, and Beth pretending like she could pick up the sounds, too. Without a doubt, she was grateful for Daryl and how he had taken her under his wing to teach her how to take care of herself. She could track, very basically, but she could do it. She could shoot dinner with her bow or a walker. She knew how to sharpen and handle a knife. He had even taught her how to throw a solid punch.

He might not have been a very vocal man about his feelings, but she knew they were there. It was in the way he talked to her when no one was around, how he held onto her while they slept in the tiny prison bunk, and the small grin he would flash her way when they were with everyone else, but no one was looking.

She didn't need huge declarations of love or wedding rings. He had given her a bow and made sure she was self-sufficient when no one else thought she needed to learn much of anything. What she felt for him was outright, head over heels love.

"Well, here we go," he muttered.

Beth looked over at him then looked up. There was a small cabin in front of them with a little porch.

"What's this?" She asked as she dropped his hand and walked forward and up the porch steps.

"Just found it when I's huntin'. Thought ya'd like to have a little place all to ourselves."

"Ya wanna move out here?" She asked quietly.

Daryl shook his head. "Nah, it ain't as safe as the prison. Just talkin' about when ya want us to get away and have some alone time."

He seemed to choke on the word alone, and Beth blushed a little. "This is really sweet, Daryl."

He grunted. "It's small, but pretty nice. Got a little table and a—" he cleared his throat. "S'got a bed."

She watched his chew on his thumbnail and look out over the woods to avoid her eyes.

"This is really amazin'." She opened the door and walked inside. There was a chair and she pulled it outside onto the porch and sat down in it before propping her feet up on the porch railing. "It's so pretty and quiet."

Daryl nodded and sat on the porch steps before taking the two rabbits off his belt. He started to skin them, and Beth asked, "What're ya doin'?"

"Just fixin' a little dinner," he mumbled.

Everything fell into place in an instant.

The way he had been so tense and uncomfortable, the walk, the cabin, the bed.

Beth closed her eyes and felt a little overwhelmed at the emotions swirling around in her heart.

"This is a date," she whispered.

Daryl didn't look up, but he shrugged.

She watched as he worked and right when he finished, she dropped her feet down and walked over to him. Beth brought her arms around his neck and squeezed him tightly. After a few seconds, he brought his hand up to her arm.

Right as she was about to pull away, she kissed his cheek then whispered beside his ear, "I love ya."

Daryl stiffened a little, but she kissed his cheek again then stood up and went back to her chair. She knew he didn't know what to say or do after that, and it was fine. It didn't bother her because she knew anyway.

"I've never had anyone make me dinner before," she said with a grin.

That seemed to snap him out of his daze because he went from looking at the ground back up at her. His eyes were squinted a little, and she couldn't tell what he was thinking. She usually could, too.

"It ain't nothin'," he argued and stood up.

"Whatever ya say," she said. "I think it's really nice."

He cleared his throat and nodded then went gather up some sticks to create a little fire pit for their meal.

* * *

The silence had never bothered him.

He knew that the quiet was good. Everything was calm and settled. It was easier to hear a threat approaching or another meal heading his way.

The difference with this kind of silence was that he didn't only have his breath to keep him company anymore. He wasn't even looking at her, but he could still hear her over his shoulder. It scared him at how quickly her breathing had become a comforting sound to him.

She was here in this world. Everything was still fine.

When he had thought about this outing, he wanted it to be special, but he didn't want it to be stupid. There were no candles or dim lighting. It was sorta musty and definitely dusty. It wasn't like something out of a damn romance novel. All Daryl wanted was for her to know that she was meant a lot to him, and that he was trying to make an effort.

While he cooked the rabbit, Beth stayed on the porch. She started out humming under her breath but turned to singing before too long. He had always thought she had a pretty voice, but didn't understand her ability to be able to sing with all the terrible shit going on. To him, there wasn't a reason for the happy singing no more.

Still, her voice brought him some comfort in those moments, and maybe that's why it was a good thing for her to do.

The weight of the moments coming up sat heavily on his shoulders as he handed over her food and took his own. This was the dinner portion of the evening, then he would split the chocolate bar he found on a run with her, then he would try and not fuck up the after part.

It was supposed to be nice, and he didn't like the idea of her first go and his first go in years being behind a flimsy curtain in a cellblock that housed a bunch of other people, one of which being her father.

Merle had been zero fucking help, and he wasn't about to ask anyone else.

They had gotten real comfortable with each other over the last few weeks, but that had always been in the dark, and she couldn't really see his face and how he looked at her. He could whisper things in the black of their cell that he couldn't during the day, and it was definitely daylight and would be until they got back to the prison.

"Ya think we should feel guilty for eatin' this and not takin' it back to the others?"

"No," he said through a mouthful of rabbit.

She laughed and moved to sit beside him on the steps. Once she was at his side, she leaned her head against him and continued eating.

"We're gonna try and hunt some more on the way back," he said after he swallowed.

"So we don't look like we spent all afternoon shacked up?" Beth asked innocently, but her breath fanned across his neck and made him shiver a little.

"Don't give a shit what they think. Just figured it would be the right thing to do."

She placed a barely there kiss on his jaw then slowly moved down toward his chin. When she got close enough, she placed her hand on the other side of his face and turned him to face her.

He licked the cracked skin of his bottom lip right before she pressed hers against his.

The feeling of her against him would never get old. Neither would her fingers tangling into his hair and pulling him harder toward her.

Beth always wanted more, and at first, he had been scared to push too hard and let her see everything that was stirring inside of him.

Not anymore, though.

He pulled away and took the few pieces of meat off her lap. "Ya finished?"

"Yeah."

Daryl stood up and grabbed her hand then led her into the cabin. He sat the meat on the table and took the chair off the porch along with their weapons and pack. Once he was back inside, he shut the door and wedged the chair under the doorknob.

"We gotta be quiet." His voice was barely above a whisper as he stared at her across the room.

"We can do that," she said and held out her hand for him.

He walked toward her, his heart pounding in his chest and his breath coming out unsteady.

When their lips met again, all that faded away. It was just him and her and for once, he didn't need to worry about their family hearing them, even in their quietest moments.

His hand slipped from hers to hip then under the bottom of her shirt.

She groaned a little as his fingers slid along the waistband of her jeans, and he started walking her back toward the bed.

Beth toed off her boots and he popped open the button on her jeans as her hands got rid of the belt at her hips.

When he laid her back on the bed, she had on the two baggy tank tops that Maggie had found for her on a run, and the off-white panties he had gotten used to.

He had never thought a lot about what women wore under their clothes before. Usually, the encounters he had were quick and ended up with him leaving before the sun came up, and he hadn't really cared what they were wearing.

Daryl helped her pulled the shirts over her head, and she laid back against the mattress again. Her bra was too big and the straps slipped off her shoulders all the time, but she still looked like something out of one of the magazines Merle had kept around their apartment.

He cleared his throat and went to unfastening his belt.

"Take off your shirt," she said and her hands went to the buttons.

He reached one hand up and stilled her movements. "Not this time," he said and looked out the single window beside the bed. "Just in case."

Beth nodded, but still unbuttoned the first few buttons of this shirt. "Just a little won't hurt," she reasoned and her hands went to his jeans as he leaned over her and kissed her.

She went from his jeans to under his shirt, scrapping her blunt nails against his stomach.

He shifted into her touch with a grunt and Beth laughed softly. "Ya like that?"

She knew he did because he could never stop that noise that passed his lips when she did it. He sucked on her bottom lip and pushed his hand into her panties. When his fingers, slid against her, she gasped and shifted into his hands.

"Ya like that?" He whispered against her lips.

The whimper that escaped her was answer enough, and he dipped his fingertip inside of her before sliding it back up and rubbing against her clit.

He kissed down her jaw and neck, licking across her collarbone then down to her tits. The cups were too big, and he reached behind her back and popped the clasps.

Her back arched under his hand and once she had thrown the bra on the floor, he sucked her nipple into his mouth.

Beth was panting and tilting her hips into his hand as he started to finger her. He reached his free hand down his jeans and squeezed his dick. There wasn't anything he wanted more than to pull her panties down and toss them to the floor the push inside her, but he need to take time to get her off today.

With that thought, he moved his hands and started to tug her panties off. Beth lifted her hips and pressed her head back into the bed as he settled between her thighs and placed them over his shoulders.

So far, this was her favorite thing he could do to her. Daryl kissed up her thigh and sucked on the skin near her hipbone, leaving a little red mark there as he went back to thrusting his finger in and out of her pussy.

When his tongue flicked over her clit, she threaded her fingers into his hair and pulled.

She never spoke when they were like this, just sounds and gasps. That turned him on more than porno dirty talking any damn day. It was just her, and she was enjoying it all so much that she didn't even think to exaggerate shit.

He wanted to tell her all sorts of things, but his tongue was busy. She was, by far, the sexiest woman he had ever known and then she went and started lifting her hips in time with his tongue, holding him right where she wanted him, and he knew there wasn't a woman anywhere who could light him up like she did.

Beth's breath caught and he looked up just in time to see her turn her head to the side and cry out softly the same time her pussy started clenching around his finger.

He gave a final drag of his tongue over her, and she twisted away from him then Daryl kissed up her stomach to where he was hovering over her.

With a hand on either side of her head, he bent his head to kiss her softly.

She opened her eyes and gave him a slow grin. After was always the best time to him. It was like he had erased every bad thing that had ever happened to her and that time had been reset. This time, though, she wouldn't push him on to his back and move to kneel between his legs, and they wouldn't stop.

Daryl brushed some hair off her forehead and whispered, "Keep goin'?"

"Yeah," she said and pulled him down for another kiss.

He twisted his tongue with hers as he dug into the back pocket of his jeans for the single rubber he had taken with him. Then he laid it beside her head.

Beth reached down and pushed his jeans past his hips and took his dick in her hand, stroking him while he leaned his face into her neck.

"Damn, girl," he muttered and thrust into her grip. He grabbed the foil wrapper and ripped it open before he rolled it down over himself.

Beth's hand traced his cheek, and he dropped his body over hers again. Once he was situated between her thighs, he took his hand placed the head of his dick right where he needed to be then slowly pressed forward.

He watched her eyes widen, and he cupped her check in his hand and put his forehead against hers as he pulled out and pushed back in a little more each time. When he had bottomed out, he kissed her then moved his lips further down to lick and suck on her tits again.

It took a few seconds then she groaned a little as he started rocking against her.

"Go a little faster," she said against his ear.

He dropped a hand to her hip and thrust inside a little faster and harder, stealing her breath.

"That okay?" Daryl asked, his voice gruff and tight. He had barely moved any and it was almost over.

"Yes," she whispered. "It's so good now."

He nodded and pulled nearly all the way out then pressed into her hard.

The room filled up with his low grunts and her breathy moans. He put his forearms on either side of her head and brought his mouth down to hers.

Her nails scrapped his shoulders and her legs wrapped around his hips.

Beth took her hand and pushed the hair off his forehead, and she held it back from his face. Her wide blue eyes locking with his and her lips parted, panting.

It hit him all at once and he slammed into her, coming with a loud groan. When his vision cleared, he took a deep breath and look down at her watching him.

"S'good?" He asked. "Ya okay?"

Beth nodded and let go of his hair before she sat up a little and kissed his lips.

"I'm amazin'."

Daryl held himself up on one hand then reached between them, holding the rubber as he pulled out. He took it off and tossed it under the bed.

"I'll pick it up the next time we come out here," he said then scooted up beside her.

He was so relaxed and sleepy. Then when Beth cuddled against him, he just felt even better. He kept his eyes closed when she kissed his jaw and then took her hand when she hummed against his neck.

"This was perfect," She said, and he could feel her smile against his skin. "I want this everyday."

Daryl smirked. "I must be a good lay."

"I meant the happiness. We had a good lunch and a good dinner and now this. It was quiet and us and perfect."

"So I ain't good then?" He asked, avoiding talking about what this had meant to him.

"That, too," she finally agreed.

Her voice was quiet though, and he declaration from earlier still floated around in his head.

"I'd give anythin' in the world for ya to be this happy everyday for the rest of your life, arrow."

"I like when ya call me that," she said and rose up over him. Her long, blonde hair had come out of her ponytail and her small breasts were in full view. She looked like a siren or something. If she started singing, it would complete the picture.

"You're so damn beautiful. Why're ya with me?" The words were out before he could think to stop them.

Beth tilted her head to the side. "You're the best man I know." He must have looked as unimpressed as he felt because she added, "You're also the most handsome man I've ever seen."

"I'm filthy and prolly smell like a dead animal," he muttered and Beth laughed before hugging him tightly.

"Ya get used to the smell," she joked and pulled away. "Seriously, though, I love you. I'm with ya 'cause you're exactly what I want. I'm just glad that ya feel the same way about me."

The look in her eyes was so sincere that he finally realized his emotions were right on his sleeve even if he thought he kept them under wraps.

As if sensing his realization, she smiled. "Don't worry. No one knows but me."

He didn't know what to say, so he pulled her down for a kiss, hoping it filled the space where the words were meant to go.


	8. Chapter 8

Ch. 8

Sorry for the delay! Things are starting to move fast now!

* * *

Merle had been looking everywhere for Carol.

Yesterday morning had been a damn mess. First all the walkers in D because some kid caught a fucking bug and then the fences falling. He had almost ripped Daryl a new asshole for hopping into the back of that fucking truck and slinging those pigs out.

They had taken all the bodies out and were burning them at the moment. Beth had been put in charge of the kids and quarantined in the warden's office, and the two people who had symptoms had been quarantined.

Still, he couldn't find Carol at all, and even though they had a little spat a couple days before sure didn't mean that he didn't want to check up on her.

Finally, he opened up the door to the generator room and saw her standing over the utility sink with a bottle of water, washing blood from her hands.

"Ya okay?" He said and shut the door behind him.

Carol jumped and met his eyes. Hers were wide and glassy. As he got closer the smell of smoke and burned flesh filled his nose.

"I haven't seen ya out there at all," he said quietly and reached for the knife at her hip.

Her reflexes were delayed, and he managed to unsheathe the knife and see the fresh stain of blood against the blade.

"What the fuck did ya do?" He asked, staring at her in shock.

"I'm just tryin' to protect the rest of us," she answered back.

"Oh, sugar," he sighed and shook his head.

"It's for the best," she argued and her voice was tight.

The next deep breath she took a tear tipped over her eyelid and down her cheek.

Merle shook his head. "What the fuck are we gonna do?" He asked to no one but himself.

* * *

"How's she doin'?" Hershel asked Daryl through the thick glass separating them.

Daryl didn't like the idea of Hershel being in there alone taking care of the sick people. He didn't like that there was no one to protect him if someone turned. He didn't like that Hershel's damn leg was giving him so much fucking trouble that he wouldn't be able to get away.

"She's fuckin' mad," he said and started chewing on his thumbnail.

"About which part?" He asked, sighing a little.

"She's locked up in an office with a bunch of stir crazy kids that've already been exposed to the damn illness, and her daddy's now the doctor over the bunch that are sick. She's pissed that she can't go on this run and help Glenn out." Daryl shook his head then said, "She's just really scared Hershel."

He nodded and looked over his shoulder. "I think this is on its way out, to be honest. Everyone in here is pretty close to death anyway."

"Even Glenn?" He asked and tried to keep his face blank.

"Yeah," Hershel said and looked at the bandana clutched in his hands. "If ya don't come back with those meds and other things, we'll lose him."

Daryl closed his eyes. "Fuckin' figures, right? We do all this shit, survive for years after everythin' then get taken out by a damn cold."

"It's more than a cold," Hershel argued.

"I know," he said. "We're gonna come in a get some of the bodies out while Merle fills up the cars then we're gonna go to that vet school."

Hershel nodded and opened up the door. "Put that over your nose and mouth. Don't ya ever take it off."

"It don't matter none," he said but did as he was told.

Hershel watched for a few minutes as Daryl took some of the bodies and loaded them on a gurney. As he was about to wheel it out and down the back corridor, Hershel cleared his throat and Daryl looked over at him.

"If somethin' happens to me, you'll make sure she's safe, won't ya?" He asked, his eyes never leaving Daryl's.

Daryl sent him a shaky nod.

"I feel better knowin' that," he said quietly then turned away, walking back in to the quarantined cellblock.

Daryl pushed the bodies outside, all the while thinking about the outbreak and the last few days.

They still didn't know who had killed Karen and David, but Daryl didn't figure that one of their own had turned into a bloodthirsty killer. They were the first two that had shown symptoms, and Daryl had the feeling that whoever had done it was trying to stop the spread of the illness.

Didn't change the fact that it was fucked up, especially given how they were left outside, but the intentions behind it weren't that of a serial killer. Tyreese was tore up about it, and he was a little unsure of having him go on the run with them, but they needed the manpower.

Merle was going to stay back and keep a watch on the fence since it was still unstable, so Daryl would have Michonne, Tyreese and Bob with him to go to the college.

With the bodies piled up and ready to burn later, he went inside and washed his arms and hands as best as he could then went down the hallways to the warden's office. Once he was there, he slide down with his back to the door and called out her name.

"Is everythin' okay?" She asked immediately.

"Good as can be, I guess. Glenn's gettin' worse. Gotta make that run for meds in a few minutes, but I wanted to stop by and tell ya bye first."

"We don't say that, remember?" She asked and her voice sounded tense.

"I know, arrow. I know," he said quietly.

At that moment, her fingers poked out from under the door, and Daryl smiled a little before holding onto the tips of them. They hadn't even had time to enjoy their afternoon away before all hell broke loose. He wanted to hold her close to him again and feel that peacefulness that he had gotten used to so fast.

"It's gonna be okay," he said.

"Yeah," she said back, but he knew she didn't believe it.

He let go of her fingers and got on his stomach and dropped a kiss on her fingertips before leaning his forehead against them.

"I'll be back before ya know it."

Daryl stood up and walked away from Beth, leaving all his worries right there with her. If it was one thing he knew for certain, it was that he couldn't go into this run with his mind clouded over. A medical college, even a vet one, wasn't going to be empty of walkers. In fact, most of those places had been used as shelters during the early days.

There was no way of knowing what they were walking into.

* * *

The sun was setting, and Beth shifted Judith around on her lap.

She hadn't heard back from Daryl, but that didn't mean anything had gone wrong. They had to go a ways to the college then who knew how long it would take to find what they were looking for. It didn't mean anything at all that he wasn't back yet.

A short knock on the door drug her out of her thoughts. "Yes?" She asked and walked closer.

"Hey, Bethy," Maggie said quietly.

Beth sat down with her back to the door and held onto Judith. "How's Glenn?" She asked, praying the answer was a good one.

"He's still hangin' on."

"That's good," Beth said and tried to keep the tears at bay. "And daddy?"

"Stubborn," she laughed. "He said that y'all could come out again."

"What?" Beth asked and turned her head towards the door.

"If we were gonna get sick, we would've already. The kids were already around the people in D. Daddy said to get everyone settled in cells and try and get the kids back to a normal routine. Keepin' y'all locked up ain't helpin' them."

Beth looked across the office at the kids sitting around in a little circle drawing on some paper she had found. She stood up and placed Judith on her hip.

"Okay. Can ya send Carol to help me get 'em situated? I need to know if I should put Mika and Lizzy in her cell now."

"She's gone with Rick," Maggie said and turned the doorknob. "He wanted to see if there was anythin' nearby for the sick."

"Oh," Beth said and moved back as Maggie opened the door. "I'll just put 'em there anyway. She won't mind."

* * *

It didn't take long to get everyone in their new cells and dinner started for the children. Maggie had gone back into the quarantine area to be with Glenn, and some of the remaining Woodbury adults sat around the dining area and outside.

As she was feeding Judith, Merle came in and looked over the group. He spotted Beth and went to where she was sitting.

"Ya seen Carol?" He asked when he reached her.

Beth shook her head. "Maggie said she went with Rick a while ago. Where've ya been?"

"Rick wanted me to burn the bodies out back and then check Daryl's snares for game. I just got back."

"Oh, well, I'm sure they'll be back soon. It's almost dark."

As if on cue, the door opened and Daryl walked through, looking madder than she had ever seen him but he didn't stop and talk to her, instead he went straight to the hallway that led to where the sick were.

"I'm gonna go holler at him," Merle said then left without a second look.

It was a few minutes later that Rick walked through the door. He looked tired but caught Beth's eye and nodded his head toward his cell.

Once she was inside, he took Judith and sighed heavily. "Can ya get Daryl and Merle to meet me over in D?"

"Sure," she said and looked over him before asking, "Is she dead?" Her heart was hammering in her chest, and she didn't know if she could take losing any more people at that moment, especially Carol.

"No," he said and looked down at his boots. "Get 'em for me?"

She nodded and took off down the hallway. When she reached the quarantine area, she gasped and ran. Once she was through the broken visitation window, she palmed her knife and walked cautiously forward.

Everything had already been taken care of though. The walkers were put down, the sick were in their cells and Glenn was intubated.

Daryl leaned against one wall and Merle against the other, watching as Maggie pumped the small bag that was breathing for Glenn.

"What happened?"

"It's rainin' shit on us," Merle answered but didn't look her way.

She turned to Daryl, but he was rubbing his face with his hands.

"Rick wants to see y'all," she said and walked toward Daryl. "He's in D block."

"He say what he wants?" Merle asked.

"No." She reached out and touched Daryl's hand, and he down at her. "Ya okay?"

His eyes were tired, and he looked so defeated. "Just worn out."

He squeezed her hand and looked up at Merle. "Let's go."

"I should get Judith from him before y'all go," she said and started to walk with them, but Daryl shook his head. "Carl can look after her. Stay with your daddy."

She wondered just how close things had come when he had shown up in the sick bay, but she wasn't about to ask. Her dad was okay. Glenn had a better chance than before, and Maggie was still alive.

"Okay," she whispered. "I'll be here."

He looked like he wanted to say something else, but in the end, he dropped her hand and followed Merle.

* * *

Merle's head was running wild, and he charged Rick. Daryl stepped up between them and pushed him back.

"Just wait. Calm down," his brother tried to reason with him.

Rick went on about how Carol could survive on her own and that she would be fine, but all Merle could see were the tears that had fallen down her cheeks in that generator room. He knew she wasn't prepared to be on her own, especially not right now.

"That's her, but that ain't her," Daryl said. "She ain't a killer. She was tryin' to protect us."

Rick shook his head. "She can't make decisions like that. That puts us all at risk."

Merle brushed his brothers hands off his chest and squared his shoulders. "Ya don't know shit about her. Tomorrow, I'm gonna get her and bring her back."

"If ya go lookin' for her, ya stay gone," Rick said. "Can't have her here. I gotta tell Tyreese. It was either she comes back, and he kills her himself, or I let her get away. This wasn't done to hurt Carol. I'm tryin' to keep her safe."

"I'd like to see that mothafucker try and hurt her," Merle said to Rick. He tried to calm down his racing heart and get his hands to stop shaking, but it was no use.

Rick just shook his head. "Let's just give it the night. Then we'll talk to Tyreese, okay?"

Merle pushed past Rick and ran down the stairs and out into the yard. He wanted to scream or hit something, but in the end all he could do was close his eyes and let the pain fill his chest.


	9. Chapter 9

Ch. 9

As always, thank you all so much for reading and reviewing!

* * *

Over the next two days, Glenn's condition improved dramatically. They got the meds into his system, and he was breathing on his own. He was weak, but he was going to be okay. Sasha was the same, weak but alive.

Beth watched her sister as she sat with Glenn in his cell and smiled at them. She had to believe that things were going to start looking up.

Her thoughts drifted to a couple of nights earlier when Daryl had came to their cell and told her that Rick had sent Carol packing and the reasoning behind it. She sat there in shock for several minutes before she said, "What's happenin' around here?"

"Don't have a fuckin' clue."

She pulled him toward the bed and her fingers lightly scratched at the scruff along his jaw. "Are we good, Daryl?"

He kissed her softly then pulled her to him with a little more force. "Ummhmm."

She still had the feeling like she was trying to hold onto water, though.

With a final glance at Maggie and Glenn, she turned and left them in their cell. It was early, and she needed to do chores before she took over care of Judith. Now that she didn't have Carol to help her, it all fell on her shoulders.

It didn't worry her too much, but the idea of being the primary babysitter seemed like an awful lot in the prison. There were only so many ways to keep a baby busy, and Judith was starting to want to crawl. Beth would need to be on her toes in the coming months when it came to her.

First on her list, though, was their cell. It was a mess since they had both been so busy with more important things. Once there, she started folding up the laundry from days before and double-checking the packs that they kept ready. She had finally unpacked all of her things right before she had moved into Daryl's cell then he told her to repack it.

"_What if we gotta run?"_

She stuffed a newly washed baby blanket into the front zipper since she had been thinking so much about Judith. If they ran, she would need stuff, too.

Suddenly, a shadow covered her, and she turned her head to peek over her shoulder. Daryl pulled the curtain closed as she stood up.

"What's goin' on?" She asked.

He didn't answer, just walked forward. He collided with her and pushed his hands into her ponytail and pressing a hard kiss on her lips. Before she knew it, he had her sitting on the desk, one hand under her shirt, the other pulling at her jeans.

His lips had moved from hers to her neck and he bit down softly before he said. "Take 'em off."

She pushed his hand out of the way and flicked open the button and started to stand. Daryl helped her and pulled them off one leg and turned her around, pressing a hand to the middle of her back and pushing her chest against the writing desk.

Beth looked over her shoulder at him and saw him suck on two of his fingers before he pressed them against her and then inside. She groaned and he stilled. "Can't be loud," he whispered. "It's gotta be quick and quiet. That okay?"

"Yes," she pressed back against his hand.

Daryl pulled away, and she heard him unbuckle his belt and his jeans brushed the backs of her thighs as they fell. The crinkle of a wrapper then his sigh as he pressed himself against her again.

His body was a cage around hers, his arms over hers, linking their hands when he pushed inside for the second time ever.

It was better starting out than the last time, but what was probably the best thing in the world was how close he was to her face and her ear. His short, choppy breathes brushed past her cheek and with each down thrust, he would squeeze her hands like he was trying to hold on a little longer.

Daryl turned his face fully into her neck and licked below her ear before he bit down and stilled inside her.

Her body tingled and every nerve ending was keyed up and ready to go, but he slid from her, kissing down her back as he went and started to pull his pants back up.

Beth remained in place for a few seconds before her mind caught up with what had happened and how quickly he had come into their cell and things had escalated. She didn't mind at all, and she definitely wanted more. A small part of her wondered what had caused him to act so out of character, but the bigger part guided her actions. She turned and hopped up on the desk then took his hand and guided it right back to where he had been.

"Sorry," he murmured against her lips. His voice just a touch embarrassed.

"Don't be." It was all she got out before he dropped to his knees, and she lost all thought completely.

* * *

He kissed her cheek before he left and lingered, letting a little of her warmth seep into him.

Growing up, he had never known what a relationship should really be. His old man and momma weren't the best examples and then the crowd he hung around hadn't been the best influence either.

As he told Tyreese that Rick wanted to see him earilier, he had felt his grief, though. Especially the moment he looked into Daryl's eyes and asked, "What would you do if it had been Beth?"

That was the first time he ever allowed himself to think of Beth gone. The idea that if he went back to their cell that her things would be there, but she wouldn't. That she wouldn't breathe, that her heart wouldn't beat, that she wouldn't cut her eyes at him and smirk when she was trying to be sneaky. That she wouldn't hum or sing or laugh.

His heart had seized up, and as soon as he could get away, he practically ran toward her.

It wasn't the best way to do things, the most romantic, but the feel of her against him calmed him down again.

"I love ya," she whispered.

Instead of ignoring what she said, he nodded against her shoulder and kissed her neck for a final time before he scooted out and down the stairs.

He was only supposed to have been gone a few minutes before he met Rick and Tyreese at the door to that led to the tombs.

They stood there waiting on him, and he wondered what they saw because both of them stopped short for second, one with a bittersweet expression and the other nothing short of amazement.

He wiped a hand along his jaw before he gripped his bow strap.

"What?" He asked.

Rick shook his head. "Where'd ya go?"

He shrugged. "Just had to grab somethin' from my cell."

"Uh huh," Rick said, and Daryl looked up from under his hair to see the smirk that lifted a corner of his mouth. "Let's go."

He followed Rick and Tyreese for a little while before Rick had started talking about Karen a little, testing the waters. They had almost made it to the end of the area they had secured when Tyreese sucked in a sharp breath.

There against the wall was a rabbit, gutted and nailed opened against a piece of wood.

"What the fuck?" Daryl muttered right as an explosion rocked the prison above.

His feet were beating concrete before Rick and Tyreese had even started moving.

* * *

Merle stood at the fence next to his brother and Carl, aiming a gun that he knew wouldn't put a dent in the Governor's firepower. For the first time since coming back after not finding any sign of Carol the day before, he was glad of where he was. This was the place he was needed at the moment, and maybe, it was the place he was always supposed to be, standing next to his brother. That didn't mean that he was going to stop looking for her, though.

He heard Beth gasp, "Daddy," and turned toward her as she dropped her gun a little.

Daryl hadn't moved at all. His eyes were on Hershel then on Rick then on the Governor.

"I can take him out from here," Carl said quietly and steadied his gun.

"Or ya could start somethin' else. Let your old man handle this," Daryl said, his eyes never leaving the scene down below.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion but in fast forward, too. The katana slicing Hershel's neck, the panicked screams of his daughters, everyone firing at once. He lost sight of his brother when he dodged the gunfire. Then he lost Beth after he stood back up and fired several rounds at the group that was approaching.

Once they made it through the gate, he went hand-to-hand with a couple before the walkers started swarming. They poured out of the woods and up the drive with a lot more speed than he had witnessed in a while.

An explosion knocked him to his knees and made him jerk his head to the left. Merle watched as Daryl shot a bolt straight through the tank driver's chest then turned and hollered, "Beth!" He was frantically looking all over the yard. "Beth!"

Merle got up and stumbled toward him. Daryl held up his bow and aimed then quickly dropped it. "Ya seen Beth?"

"No," he said. "Lost sight of her a while ago."

Daryl's eyes darted all over the yard, and a flash of blonde hair caught their eyes at the same time, but Daryl took off running before him.

"I's lookin' for the kids," she said, her voice bordering on hysterical. "I couldn't find 'em."

"Prolly on the bus," he said and grabbed her arm. "We gotta go, Beth. We gotta go."

Merle followed behind them, watching for stray walkers as the got outside the gate then out into the woods.

Once they were in Daryl's territory, he let go of her wrist and yelled back over his shoulder. "Follow me. Merle ya make damn sure nothin' gets to her from behind."

"I got it," he said and looked back for a second.

The fences were down, the prison burned, and their people were scattered.

There was no meeting place, no back-up safe haven.

Merle turned and ran behind Beth and his brother.

It was just them now.

* * *

Hours later, she lay in the tall grass, watching as buzzards flew overhead. She tried to catch her breath, but couldn't. They had ran until she was sure she couldn't move her legs anymore, but if the familiar growls sounded around them again, they would get up and take off.

Her thoughts flashed to her father, and she squeezed her eyes shut. There was no way she was ready to think about that yet—or ever.

Eventually, Merle sat up and rested his forearms on his knees. "Fuckin' hell," he muttered.

Daryl heaved himself up and looked at his brother. "What do we do?"

"Find a place to sleep tonight. Not a damn one of us will be worth a shit to keep watch."

Daryl nodded and stood up, stretching his arms over his head. "Ran north," he said and looked down at Merle, never meeting Beth's eyes. "That bus was supposed to head east."

"Tomorrow or the next day, we go east," Merle answered like it was no big deal, both of them seeming to forget that she was laying in between them.

"'Bout two hours from Lakeshore," Merle nodded his head behind them. "Wanna see if the shack's still up?"

Daryl nodded and adjusted the strap across his body. "It'll be as good as anythin' right now." Then he started walking.

Beth rolled onto her stomach and pushed up, following them through the overgrown pasture. She wanted to ask what the deal was, and why he was being so distant, but at the same time, she needed the silence.

Maybe that's what they all needed at the moment, a time to reflect on the fact that everything wasn't fine and probably wouldn't be again. That she was with Merle and Daryl Dixon, and as long as she was with those two, she was safe, and a lot of the people from the prison weren't in her good position.

The children she couldn't find were with people less capable of survival or even worse, all alone. Judith was out there somewhere, and she hoped it was on the bus with the others or at least with Carl.

Her sister wouldn't know where to look for her, but hopefully, she had Glenn and would be able to care for him. Beth didn't want to think about how hard it would have been for him, not even well, to get out of the prison with all those walkers wandering up.

Beth shook her thoughts away and looked at the two men in front of her. The similar set of their shoulders, the way they walked in-step. If she closed her eyes, she could picture their blue eyes and grins that sorta matched up on good days.

They might have been the only family to make it out of the prison alive.

At that moment, Merle slung his arm over Daryl's shoulder and said something to which Daryl pushed him away and glared.

Merle nodded and turned his head forward again. "He's a goner now, though."

"How'd ya know?" Daryl asked, pushing some sweaty hair from his face.

"He wasn't plannin' on leavin' that field alive after he did what he did."

That was the moment he chose to look back at her, and she really saw his eyes since they had started running through the woods.

Guilt was weighing him down.


	10. Chapter 10

Ch. 10

I'm really nervous about this one, so I hope you like it.

* * *

Sweat dripped down Daryl's forehead, and he wiped it away with the back of his hand and as they moved through the woods.

He was in the front and Merle brought up the rear while a silent Beth trudged along in the middle.

The shack in Lakeshore had been a bust and had been burnt down a long time ago, so they moved east. Daryl voted to avoid towns and Merle agreed, but Beth wanted to leave messages for their family, so they detoured out of the woods. When they made it to the outskirts of Senoia and saw that the sides of buildings were full of messages already, she turned and walked the other direction.

He wanted to hug her and tell her it was going to be okay, but he couldn't even allow himself the comfort that would bring.

Daryl had failed her and everyone else at the prison. He didn't deserve shit.

"Let's set up camp for the night," he said and dropped his pack in the middle of a cluster of trees.

Merle started stringing the warning system, Beth went to work on the fire, and he looked for something to eat besides the out-of-date can of beans they had found yesterday.

Every time he got away from them like this, he started to feel like he couldn't breathe, so the trips were always quick. When he was right beside them, he couldn't stop thinking about the prison, though. He didn't talk unless absolutely necessary and resorted to grunts when asked a questioned most of the time.

Merle was used to it because when he was dealing with something he didn't want to feel, he acted the same way. Beth didn't know what to do with him, though. She had tried to talk to him, lay beside him, comfort him, but Daryl pushed her away at every turn.

A few days after they left Lakeshore, she had asked him, "What did I do?" Her brow was pulled together and her eyes were full of confusion.

Aggravation rolled off him, and he snapped, "Ya don't do a fuckin' thing, girl."

She had stared at him, wide-eyed, for a moment before looking away. Since then, nearly a week had passed, and she hadn't said more than a handful of words.

Daryl circled their camp for nearly half an hour before it got too dark to see and he went back empty-handed.

Merle was laying on his back with a hand thrown over his eyes, and Beth sat near the fire, staring into the flames. He took a seat opposite of her, and she nodded to the can of beans. "Your portion's warm."

"You eat it," he said gruffly.

"Ya need it just as much as the rest of us."

Daryl shook his head. "You're skin and bones, girl. I'll go huntin' tomorrow and find somethin'. Ya need this."

Her eyes flickered to the can and her tongue peeked out and slid along her bottom lip.

It was hard to believe that a couple of weeks ago, he had been inside her, kissing and licking the skin along her body, and now, they were practically strangers.

It was his fault, and he knew it. He just didn't know how to fix it.

Daryl took first watch, and Beth and Merle fell asleep quickly. All of them were so worn down and needed a solid night's sleep. Tomorrow, he would hunt, and they would find shelter for a few days instead of running in circles, looking for people that were probably dead anyway.

He was dozing and knew that he should be waking up Merle for watch when he heard the first growls in the distance.

They were moving quick, too.

Daryl jumped and up and shook them both awake.

"Herd," he said and pointed to the south. "Move now."

Merle threw on the pack, Beth grabbed the small blanket she laid on, and Daryl held his bow at his side as they ran off into the darkness.

As they ran, it became more and more clear that the herd was a lot bigger than he had anticipated. They closed in on the sides, and Daryl started to get scared that this was it, until they crashed through the trees and onto a road.

An abandoned car sat right in front of them. Beth ran to the driver's side to try and crank it, but it was missing its damn door, so he had his doubts it would start. Merle opened the trunk and said, "Y'all get the fuck in here. I'll get up in that tree."

With that said, Beth climbed inside with Daryl behind her while Merle crossed the road into the woods again.

With shaky hands, Daryl tied the trunk shut with his rag. He watched Beth as she trembled, holding her knife at the ready.

His crossbow was aimed at the little sliver of an opening, and seconds after they were situated, the herd started to rumble past their car.

The groans were as loud as the thunder that started unexpectedly. He worried for his brother being stuck up in a tree during a storm, but he worried even more for him and Beth being ground level in a flimsy trunk as hundreds of walkers passed by.

He looked at Beth and saw her wide eyes and raised his hand, motioning for her to calm down.

Her chest was rising and falling rapidly, and against his better judgment, he said, "Breathe, arrow. Close your eyes and breathe."

The nickname seemed to make her well up with tears, but she did as he said and after several minutes, she was breathing a little easier.

She didn't open her eyes for the rest of the night, and a little while after her breathing had evened out, she placed a hand on his shin and kept it there.

* * *

Daylight came and Merle was freezing his balls off in a tree high above the woods.

His arm was sore where he had used his knife to help him climb, but otherwise, he was okay. He whistled low and almost immediately, the trunk popped open and his brother and Beth crawled out.

Without a word to each other, they started walking around the car, collecting little bits of stuff they could use, and then Daryl started to walk down the road, Beth followed, and once Merle was on solid ground again, he fell in line.

The sun dried his clothes quick, and after a couple of hours, his arm stopped aching.

Beth and Daryl remained silent.

Whatever was going on in his brother's head was fucking up the dynamic that was for sure. Merle had a feeling that it was all going to come to a head and explode before too long. Beth had a temper on her, and Merle was really surprised she hadn't popped off yet.

Around midday, they stopped in the woods so Daryl could hunt and they could rest a little. Merle had fallen asleep and woke up to Beth's raised voice, "Ya brought me back?"

She turned and started to walk away, but Daryl grabbed her arm and yanked her back. "Ya had your fun, girl. I ain't got time for your shit."

Her nostrils flared and she pulled her arm away from him. "I'm not stayin' in this suck ass camp, Daryl!" Then she flipped him off and took off into the woods.

Merle stood up and stretched before he asked, "What's got her panties in a twist?"

Daryl glared at him. "Said she wants a damn drink. Went off through the woods lookin' for a fuckin' bar, I guess. I don't know. She's lost her mind."

Merle popped his neck and picked up their pack. "Now, that's an idea I can get behind, baby brother." He stepped over the warning lines and went in the direction Beth did. After a few minutes, he heard Daryl approaching and smirked.

Maybe a little liquor was what he needed to pull that stick out of his ass and realize they were all hurting just as much as him.

Hell, he didn't even have a point of reference anymore when it came to finding Carol. If she was close and saw the smoke, she would have gone to the prison to check things out. Once she saw that destruction, she probably would have lost all hope at finding anyone again. He just needed to bide his time and come up with a plan then he would get them to help him look for her.

They walked in silence for a long while before him and Beth broke through a tree line onto a fairway with walkers in the distance.

"Golfers like to booze it up, right?"

"Do I look like I played fuckin' golf, sugar?"

Beth eyed him for a second then started walking toward the clubhouse. Daryl picked up the pace to get beside her as she made it to the front door.

"Let me," he said and forced his way in front of her.

The door was locked and walkers were getting closer from the fairway. They moved around to the side door, and it was open. They slipped in with Daryl sliding a golf club through the door handles right as the walkers hit it.

Snarls that sounded a whole hell of a lot closer came from behind him and he turned, ready to fight.

Once he saw where the walkers were, he sighed and looked around the room. It used to be the main room of a camp, but something happened all at once it seemed. Four walkers hung from the ceiling; others were dead on the floor.

Probably got snuck up on by some looters early on judging by how they looked.

They moved silently through the clubhouse until they got to the kitchen. He was looking in cabinets along with Daryl when they heard walker snarls and Beth fighting. They both rushed toward the sound, and he saw the worry in his brother's eyes, but when it became obvious that she was fine, he cooled his look.

"Thanks for the help," she said through her heavy breathing.

"Ya said ya could take care of yaself. Ya did." Then he turned and walked back the way he came.

Beth looked at Merle then toward Daryl's back then to him again. Tears welled in her eyes, but she held them back and moved forward again.

Inside the pro shop, Daryl and Merle sat next to the cash register after they had picked everything clean and Beth had changed clothes.

He watched as she struggled with the woman who had been sliced in half and put on a mannequin. It was pretty obvious now that these dead ones had been dealt some shit before they were finally put out of their misery.

"Help me," she said in a pleading voice.

Daryl sighed and chewed on a cinnamon stick. "Don't matter. She's dead."

Beth locked eyes with him. "It does matter."

For some reason that caused him to move and grab a sheet to place over the woman.

They left the room, and Merle followed. He wondered what was going to happen because he had the feeling they weren't even paying him any mind anymore.

Beth wanted Daryl to snap out of it, and Daryl wanted her to make him.

Or at least that's how it seemed to him.

A few minutes, and a few walkers later, they finally made it to the bar.

He sat down at a table, watching as Daryl walked around Beth muttering shit and Beth clutched the only fucking drink the place like it was a lifeline.

His brother threw a few darts with all his might and then it happened.

The dam broke, and she finally started crying.

Merle was just about to get up and hug her, something that was completely uncharacteristic of him, when Daryl tossed the last dart and went to her. He grabbed the bottle and threw it down, shattering it against the floor.

"Ain't gonna have your first drink be no damn peach schnapps."

Merle couldn't help but smirk a little as Beth dried her tears, and Daryl pushed open the door.

"C'mon."

* * *

Daryl handed over the crate of moonshine and saw Beth's smile when he told her what it was. Inside the house, he watched his brother land heavily in the camo print recliner, and Beth sit at the small table.

Merle wasted no time grabbing a jar and twisting the top open. He took a long pull and coughed a little.

"Good shit, baby brother."

"Is it?" Beth asked quietly as Daryl poured her a glass. "My daddy always said that bad shine could make ya go blind."

Daryl tried to stop it but the image of Hershel on his knees flashed through his mind, and he fought the urge to flinch.

"Ain't nothin' worth seein' out there anyway."

Beth stared for a moment then nodded before taking her first sip. She gagged and Merle laughed. On her next sip, she surprised him and turned the glass up and drained it.

"Second round's better." She cut her eyes at him and smirked.

Beth poured a little more, and he said, "Slow down. It's strong shit."

"This is for _you_."

"Nah," he said and shook his hand out as she handed up the glass.

"Why not?" She asked, her voice suddenly full of fire.

"Someone's gotta keep watch. You and him gettin' drunk ain't exactly how I wanna spend my time today."

"Yeah, well, all I wanted to do was lay down and cry, but I don't get to do that."

"Oh, yeah, you're the only one with problems," he muttered and took the glass, draining it before picking up a mason jar and unscrewing the lid. If everyone else was going to get wasted, so was he, then he went to the window.

"Just what the hell's that supposed to mean?" She slammed her glass down against the table.

"What the hell do ya think it means? I'm stuck out here, too." Daryl grabbed a piece of siding and started to nail it over the window. When the top part was secure, he stopped for a second and took two huge pulls from the shine jar.

They settled into an uncomfortable silence for several minutes. The alcohol worked its way into his system. Soon, he stopped even pretending to secure the shack and just took gulps of moonshine from the jar as he leaned against the wall.

"So, that's it, huh?" She whispered quietly then she stood up and her voice got louder. "I was good enough for ya at the prison, but now I'm some burden? I'll have ya know that I've got more self-respect than to follow after a man that don't want me," she hollered and grabbed the mason jar, drinking straight from it instead of pouring a civilized drink.

Merle watched the interaction but didn't step in. He did look tense as hell, though.

"I didn't never say that. You're puttin' words in my mouth, woman," Daryl said and shook his head.

"Ya don't look at me anymore. Ya don't touch me; ya don't kiss me."

"I'm sorry if I don't feel like fuckin' ya against a tree with my brother a few feet away keepin' watch. That don't get my dick hard," he said in a harsh voice.

Beth slammed down the mason jar against the table and the shine sloshed out onto her hand. "You're so fuckin' crude, Daryl Dixon."

"Watch your damn mouth," he muttered and turned away to finish nailing the panel to the wall.

"No, I don't think I will." The jar she had been holding slammed against the wall next to him and shattered, causing him to jump and anger to flood his system.

"Holy shit!" Merle said and drew both of their attention. "Y'all need to calm down."

"Don't ya tell me to calm down, Merle Dixon. This don't concern you!" She said and looked at Daryl again. "Ya've been avoidin' me since the prison fell. Ya think I distracted ya? Are ya blamin' this on us, and I'm just gettin' the raw end of the deal?"

Daryl punched his fist into the wall beside the window, trying to get rid of some of the fury inside himself then turned on her. "What the fuck do ya want from me, girl? Our whole fuckin' family's dead, and ya got me draggin' ya all over Georgia lookin' for hooch like some dumb college bitch!"

"Ya don't have to be my chaperone, Mister Dixon," she said as hatefully as he had ever heard her speak. "I ain't nobody's burden. I just wish ya'd've gone and thought this through a little more before ya decided to screw me and then break my fuckin' heart."

Merle sat up in his chair and put the jar of shine down. He was watching so closely, ready to jump in at any minute, but Daryl knew it wasn't to pull Beth off of him. Merle looked like he was scared that Daryl would backhand her.

Beth picked up the jar of shine. "Let's play a game before I head out on my own. I'll say somethin' I've never done before, and if ya've done it, ya take a drink. If ya haven't, I take a drink. I'll go first." She paused. "I ain't never fucked and ducked on someone before."

Daryl wasn't going to play. He just stared straight at her.

"Oh, ya gonna ignore me?" She took a drink and tapped a finger to her chin. "A different game them. Let's figure out what Daryl Dixon did before all this shit."

Merle actually stood up then, and Daryl realized that he was clenching his fists so hard he was drawing blood from his palm.

"Motorcycle mechanic?"

"No," he gritted out.

"Prison guard?"

"No."

Beth tilted her head. "Were ya ever in prison?"

He closed his eyes and took a calming breath, but all he felt was fucking rage over everything. "That what you think of me?"

Beth threw up her hands. "What am I supposed to think of ya? Ya never tell me anythin'. I told ya everythin' about the farm and growin' up. About my plans to go singin' in Atlanta. Ya never told me nothin'. Ya sure as hell didn't mind gettin' in my pants, though."

"Maybe that's 'cause I don't wanna fuckin' talk about it, and ya threw yaself at me. A man would have to be fuckin' stupid not to take what ya offered up." He instantly regretted the words, but as he said it, the anger was seeping from his bones, so kept going. "Let's play that game again, princess. I think you're gonna be doin' a lotta drinkin'."

He picked up his nearly empty mason jar and said, "I ain't never had a pet pony. I ain't never had frozen yogurt. Never depended on anybody for anythin' before." With each barb he through, her armor cracked more and more, until she wasn't that self-righteous, demanding answers angel but a slumping in on herself woman. He smirked and shook his head, and Merle spoke, "That's good enough, Daryl."

He ignored him and went in for the kill. "Sure as hell never cut my wrist lookin' for attention."

Beth's eyes widened and so did Merle's. It didn't occur to him until that moment that Merle had never known that about Beth.

She finally broke eye contact with him right as a walker growled from below the window. Daryl smirked, feeling the effects from the moonshine and grabbed his bow then Beth's arm. "Ya ain't had practice in a few days. Whatdaya say, Greene? For old times sake? I might even let ya blow me after."

She struggled to get away, and Merle walked across the room to take his hand off her, but Daryl pushed him back against the wall. "This ain't none of your fuckin' business. This is between me and my woman."

Then he pulled Beth outside and started calling for the walker. Four arrows released from his bow, Beth pulled tight to his chest as her fingernails dug into his arm. Finally he let her go, and she ran forward, killing the walker with her knife.

"What the fuck did ya do that for? We was havin' fun, weren't we?"

"We don't kill 'em for fun! What if someone had done that to my dad?" She screamed and started crying.

"That ain't even remotely the same." He pointed his finger at her.

Beth backed away and crossed her arms over her chest. "I get it. You're scared."

He took two steps toward and got right in her face. "I ain't afraid of nothin'."

"Oh, yeah, ya are. God forbid ya ever get too close!"

"That what you think?" He asked harshly.

Beth laughed humorlessly and nodded. "That's what I know. I'm not Carol or Maggie or Michonne, but I made it, and ya don't get to treat me like crap 'cause you're afraid. We all lost somethin', Daryl!"

"Girl, if I hadn't given up lookin'. If I had pushed harder and stayed out there, none of this woulda happened. I'd've found him, and we wouldn't have lost the prison. Rick." The tears spilled over his eyes. "Your dad." Daryl turned away from her. "This is all on me. If I'd've tried harder, maybe it woulda been different."

He turned from her and started crying full force. Without warning, Beth collided with his back, wrapping her arms around him as he finally mourned.

* * *

Merle watched from the window as Daryl talked to Beth. Both of them were still a little drunk, but finally sharing things again.

"Ya wanna know what I was before all this?" He asked Beth. "I's nobody. Nothin'. Just some redneck asshole with an even bigger asshole for a brother." Merle snorted. That was a true statement if he had ever heard one. Daryl had gotten their momma's heart while he had gotten his old man's selfishness.

Beth scooted forward and took his hand. "You're a good man. I fell in love with a good man, Daryl, and just 'cause the Governor came back doesn't mean it was your fault. It's not on you."

"Maybe you'll have to keep on remindin' me sometimes," he said quietly.

"Ya gotta put the past away, Daryl, or it'll kill ya." Beth sent him a sad smile, "You're gonna be the last man standin'." Daryl scoffed and she continued, "Ya are. And you're gonna miss—"

"Stop," he said sharply and Beth met his eyes again. "Don't ever say anythin' like that to me. I know I've been a dick lately, and I'll work on it. Try and make it like it was. Just don't ever say what ya were about to say. I couldn't make it."

He cleared his throat, and Merle knew he should have given them privacy, but he needed something good just as much as they did.

"Back at the prison, it wasn't just screwin' around, ya know that, right? Ya mean the world to me."

Beth sat up on her knees and moved over to him before turning around and sitting in between his legs.

"We should get inside, arrow," he said against her shoulder. "I'd like a good night's sleep next to ya."

"I's gonna say we should burn it down, but that sounds a lot better. At least for tonight anyway."

Merle walked back to the recliner and leaned it back, pretending to be asleep when they entered and curled together in front of the door.

He laid awake for a long while.

Maybe tomorrow he would go his separate way from them and try and look for Carol, or they could all go together. There were words hanging on his tongue that he wanted to say before it was too late, too.


	11. Chapter 11

Ch. 11

Thank you all so much for reviewing! I hope you like it!

* * *

They left the shack in the middle of the night anyway. Nearly fifteen walkers came out of the woods and started growling around, and they were still too drunk to do much of anything but panic.

While him and Merle worked out an escape plan, Beth poured out three jars of moonshine then set a match to it. With the walkers, him, and Merle distracted by the blaze on the front porch, Beth knocked out a window and threw a lid at them to get their attention. Even being drunk, she managed to save their asses, and she got to burn the son of a bitch down like she wanted to.

When they were a good distance away and the sun had started to rise, they stopped to rest.

"Little pyro," Merle said as he settled against the base of a tree.

Beth turned pink and shook her head. "I got us out, didn't I?"

"That ya did, princess," he agreed and closed his eyes. "Could sure use some more sleep, though."

"I hear that," Daryl said and rubbed a hand over his face. "We need to find a secure place to stay for a few days."

"Do we even know where we are?" Beth asked and leaned her head against him.

He was worried that once the booze wore off, she would be really fucking mad at his ass for all he had said and done the day before, but he wouldn't question the affection until that time came.

"'Bout near Miller's Creek, I reckon," Merle said.

Daryl snorted. "That's south of here. Ya couldn't tell your ass from a hole in the ground."

"Fuck off," Merle muttered. "I'm tired. Ain't got my bearin's."

Daryl snorted. "Porter's a little north of here. They ain't got much, but they got that bait and huntin' shack. Maybe it ain't been hit up yet. It's got that flat roof, too. We could sleep up there and finally all get some solid rest."

"If it's even there," Merle said and straightened his legs out in front of him.

"There's no guarantees anythin' is left anywhere," Beth said quietly.

"Only one way to find out," Daryl grunted as he stood up. "Got another coupla hours ahead of us."

Slowly, Beth and Merle stood up and began following behind Daryl. He hoped for all their sakes that the shop would be in one piece.

* * *

A break finally came their way in the form of the old hunting and fishing store in Porter.

It was nothing more than a portable building with an AC unit in one window, but it had extra arrows, fishing poles, and knives. There were four rifles, several boxes of bullets, and two sleeping bags.

Beth almost cried when she found several packages of beef jerky still sealed. It might have gone out of date a year ago, but her momma always said if it hadn't been opened at all, some things lasted a lot longer than their "best by" date.

Jerky was one of them apparently.

That first night, she and Daryl unzipped one sleeping bag and laid it flat then used the blanket they had in their pack to cover up with, while Merle took the other sleeping bag for himself. They laid on the roof, and for the first time in weeks, they slept the entire night.

Beth had never felt so rested or full. Or at least she couldn't remember the last time, and she didn't actively try because that would mean going back to the prison, and she didn't want that, even in her thoughts.

It was beyond comforting to wake up to Daryl curled around her again. The words they threw at each other hurt, but at least they had gotten it all out and finally moved past it. She knew she hadn't touched the full loss of her daddy yet, and she might not unless she found Maggie, but she had gotten a good bit of the pain and anger off her chest.

During the week that they stayed at the tackle shop, Daryl took her out, and they worked on her hunting and tracking. Merle fished. They rested and got their strength back along with a little boost in morale.

She had been so sad the morning they left it behind, but Daryl held her hand in his and led her forward. Beth knew the only way to survive was to keep going so she took courage in his grip and put one foot in front of the other.

* * *

They had been moving through the woods a few hours when Daryl had her start tracking for them.

Merle laughed a little when she got turned around, but for the most part, he chewed on a cinnamon stick behind her and Daryl.

"Whatcha trackin'?" Daryl asked and pointed to the ground.

She sighed and stared at the forest floor. "Looks kinda zig-zaggy." Beth peeked up at Daryl. "It's a walker."

He smirked and nodded. "Go on then." And waved his hand in front of them.

She followed the tracks to an open meadow and found a walker eating on something. She took her bow and slowly stepped forward, keeping it in her sights. Just as she was about to release the arrow, a crushing pain hit her ankle and caused her to crumple to the ground.

The walker turned and started walking toward her. Beth released the arrow, hitting the walker in the jaw.

Before she knew it Merle was charging forward, stabbing his knife hand through its head and Daryl was sliding up beside her, pulling the trap off her foot and ankle.

"Fuck," he muttered and grunted as he pried the jaws open. "Ya alright? Do ya think it's broken?"

"Definitely not broken," she whispered. "I broke the other ankle when I was twelve. I know broke. This is just sprained or bruised, but it hurts a whole lot."

"I fuckin' bet," he said. "You're lucky it was so rusted. It didn't pack nearly as much force as it should've."

"Can ya walk?" Merle asked.

She turned her head and looked up at him. "Yeah. I'll just be a lot slower."

"It just so happens we got all the time in the world, sugar." He answered and held out his hand. Daryl stood up, too, and they both helped her stand before Daryl put a steadying arm around her waist.

They continued on, barely moving it felt like, for at least another hour. The trees broke again and a cemetery lay in front of them.

Beth sighed and said, "Can we rest for a minute?"

Daryl looked from her to the funeral home across the cemetery and slid his bow around front. "Hop up."

"Are ya serious?" She asked with a hint of laughter in her voice.

Daryl bent down a little and nodded. "It's a serious piggy back, arrow."

She grinned and placed her hands on his shoulders.

"Smooth move, Darla." Merle laughed and walked past them.

Beth jumped up and Daryl caught her behind the thighs. "You're heavier than ya look," he mumbled.

"Shut up," she said and leaned her head down against his shoulder.

"Ya think anyone's there?" She asked.

"If they are, I'll take care of 'em."

"They might be good people."

Daryl paused for a moment then said, "I don't think the good ones make it."

Beth sighed and looked toward the tombstones as they passed. One caught her eye and she tapped his shoulder and started to slide off his back.

_Beloved father._

She stared at those words for a long time before Daryl's movement caused him to turn her head. He placed some yellow flowers on top of it, and Beth sent him a sad smile. "Thank you."

Once they were side-by-side again, she linked their fingers together while Daryl stayed silent. It was a silence for everyone they had lost, but it was the funeral her father had never gotten. And for a moment, Beth wondered if Daryl was right and the good ones didn't make it after all.

* * *

The funeral home was spotless, and full of food. The doors and windows were all boarded up, too. They could make it here for a while. It was secure, and the woods were close enough that him and Merle could go out and hunt.

They needed this windfall. Beth's ankle was swollen and tender. It would be at least a month before she would actually be able to run full speed again.

Daryl breathed a sigh of relief as he locked up the front door. Things were starting to look up.

He found Merle and Beth sitting at the kitchen table, sharing a jar of peanut butter. Daryl grabbed the jelly off the table and stuck his fingers in while Beth made a sound of disgust.

"Use a spoon, Daryl," she said and slid one across the table to her. He ignored it and ate some more.

He felt guilty, but the last thing he wanted was Merle to open his mouth. The little twinkle in his eye let Daryl knew there would be hell to pay if he touched that spoon.

After a few seconds Merle looked away. "I think I'ma head into a few of the nearby towns. Might be gone a little while."

"Why?" Beth asked. "We just found a safe place."

Merle started picking at the table with his fingernail, and Daryl could feel the tension coming off of him.

"Thought I'd try and find Carol."

Beth sight softly and reached out and laid a hand on Merle's arm. He tried to pull away, but she held on.

"Okay then," she said quietly. "Ya gotta be safe, though. No hero bullshit. Check in every other day if ya can."

"When'd ya become my mother?" He muttered.

Daryl watched as Beth looked between the two them. Her eyes looked so tired. "I'm not. I guess I've just gotten used to havin' ya around."

"Must be my sterlin' personality."

Beth cleared her throat. "Must be." She put down her spoon down and stood up. "I think I'm gonna go lay down. I'm pretty beat, and my ankle hurts."

She stopped by Daryl and kissed his cheek, lingering just a little longer than she usually did in front of anyone.

Once she was up the stairs, Merle looked to Daryl and said, "Ya got a good one." Daryl shrugged. "Ya need to own it. I don't think it's bad to have it now. Before? I thought it was a load of horseshit, but now, I think we need it to keep on."

"That why ya goin' to track down Carol?"

It was Merle's turn to shrug then.

They sat in silence for several minutes before Merle said, "There's only three people in this world that'd I'd do somethin' stupid and die for." Daryl lifted his eyes and looked over at his brother. "Two of 'em are here. Just makes sense to bring the other person here, too."

Merle chewed on his bottom lip for a second then said, "I knew what she did. I found her after, thought no one would put it together. She was messed up over it."

"I imagine," he said quietly, his mind reeling from what he just heard.

"Just gotta try," Merle spoke just as softly.

Daryl nodded with a grunt and stood up. "I'ma head to bed."

That made Merle smirk. "'Sides, you and blondie need some time to yaselves. Bet your balls are blue."

Daryl shook his head, for once happy for the near dark. He could feel the heat in his cheeks and didn't want to hear Merle's laughter.

"'Night," Daryl ignored him and turned for the door.

"Night, baby brother."

* * *

Merle slipped out right before daybreak.

He had a rifle slung over one shoulder and his sleeping bag strung across his back.

He could set snares and scavenge for food, plus he had taken Beth's last pack of beef jerky. She would be pissed but tough shit. She had off brand soda and pig's feet.

He took a quick look back at the funeral home and hoped like hell it wouldn't be the last time he saw it.


	12. Chapter 12

Ch. 12

Thank you all so much for reviewing! I hope you like this!

* * *

Daryl knew as soon as he hit the bottom step that Merle was gone.

He sighed and hit his palm against the railing.

Carol killing those two people was a bad fucking deal, but she was his friend, and he knew that she hadn't done it for the thrill or out of a maliciousness. She had done it to protect everyone. Granted, it wasn't the best way to handle the situation, and they would have followed after him, but there was no way Beth's ankle would allow for that.

"Daryl?"

He turned and looked up the stairs at Beth before giving her a tight smile then said, "Looks like we're gonna be waitin' for him to get back."

Beth nodded and looked down. "I just hope he's careful. He can be reckless."

"I know."

* * *

Beth stopped wondering if Merle was dead at the end of the first week, and started to realize he was probably being a pain in the ass since she had demanded that he keep in contact.

When that was squarely put away, she felt a bit of the guilt on her shoulders lessen. It seemed liked instead of actually accomplishing anything practical, her and Daryl had spent a majority of their time in the upstairs bedroom. Along with one particularly memorable incident when he was laying in a display coffin after she got done singing at the piano.

It hadn't all been easy, though. Their first night alone had been awkward to say the least. She immediately reached for him when he laid down beside her, but he tried to keep her at a distance, always pulling back. Beth wasn't about to push him for anything if he didn't want it, so she gave him one last lingering kiss then rolled over.

Daryl stayed motionless for a few beats before he turned and wrapped his arm around her, pressing his erection against her butt.

"I want ya," he whispered. "I just ain't got nothin'. It was all in my other pack at the prison."

Beth nodded. "I know. This is good, too," she said and linked their fingers together over her stomach.

That night he fell asleep with a hard on and she went to bed aching for his touch.

The next night, and each one after that, had them giving in, though. Not all the way, but when she got to hear him groan low against her skin, it was almost as good.

_Almost._

* * *

Daryl sat beside her at the kitchen table, looking over all the food they had eaten, and Beth said, "What if they're not comin' back?"

Daryl picked up the last jar of pig's feel and shrugged. "Then we stay here a while. It's safe. Got good vantage points. We could make a home here for a bit."

Beth felt the corners of her lips twitch up. "I do like it here."

"Good," he said quietly. Then, much to her surprise, he leaned over and kissed her softly. "I like it here, too."

The security line out front jingled and Daryl shot up and picked up his crossbow. "Stay here," he ordered and walked out of the room and into the hallway.

He peeped through the slates over the glass door front as Beth watched. He snorted. "Just a damn dog." Then he opened the door before reaching down and starting to call for it. "Stupid mutt," he said and stood back up, looking at Beth. "Thought I told ya to stay back," he said with a scowl.

"But, Daryl, ya said there was a dog." She shook her head and smiled. "How could I _not_ come see him?"

He waved his hand in front of him and said, "Get your ass back in there and finish eatin'."

Beth turned but her ankle buckled a little and she winced. Before she knew it, Daryl had picked her up and was carrying her into the kitchen.

"I can walk, ya know?" She laughed as he sat her down.

Daryl shrugged and took his seat again, pulling it a little bit closer to her. "It's gonna be dark soon," he muttered and looked around the room. "Need to go lookin' for some more candles or somethin'."

"Why?" She asked and nudged his shoulder with hers. "Ya wanna stay up late with me?"

The tips of his ears turned pink and snorted. "Just need some light s'all. Gotta have some way to see around this place."

"We should set somethin' on fire," she said as seriously as she could manage, causing Daryl to snap his head in her direction. "I'm just kiddin'."

"Don't know what goes on in your mind half the time," he said quietly. "Just tryin' to keep my head above water."

Beth narrowed hers at him and asked, "I make ya feel like you're drownin'?"

"It's a good drownin'." His voice was soft, and he stuffed a spoonful of jelly into his mouth right after he said it.

Beth bit her bottom lip then pushed her chair out a little.

The man was too sweet and cute for his own good, and what was even worse was that he didn't realize it.

Sometimes he would let his guard down completely and send her a crooked grin that Beth was addicted to. She loved his gruff laugh. She adored how he had gotten comfortable over the last week and was finally losing the tension in his shoulders. She ached for him to follow her upstairs and love on her again then let her do the same to him.

The funeral home became their bubble, and even though Merle was off—God knows where—they still felt safe.

Beth brushed the tip of her tongue over her bottom lip then grabbed the spoon from Daryl. He looked ready to say something but stopped really quickly once he met her eyes. He screwed the lid back on the jar of jelly then sat it off to the side. Once it was out of the way and the spoon placed on the counter behind them, Beth moved to straddle his lap.

"Whatcha doin'?"

Beth shrugged and hummed like he always did when he didn't want to use words, but Daryl shook his head. "None of that bullshit. Tell me what ya want."

Beth leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. "You," she whispered. "Just you."

He let her kiss him again, this time gripping her hips in his hands and pulling her closer to him. They kissed for a long time with her rolling her hips against his before he spread his hands over her bottom and stood up.

He sat her down on the counter and a hand slipped under her shirt while the other messed with her jeans.

Daryl tugged them down her legs and once they were bunched around her boots, he sucked two fingers into his mouth, wetting them, making her moan at the sight, then pushed her panties to the side and parted her lips. Daryl groaned and took her lips again as he started to pump his fingers in and out.

She felt electric in those moments, especially when he curled his fingers up and against some spot inside that she didn't know how to find herself.

Her hands were twisted in his hair and she had moved from his mouth to kissing and sucking on the skin of his neck. This put his mouth by her ear and every exhale and grunt made her clench a little around him.

Beth toed off one boot, ignoring the shooting pain in her ankle. Daryl had turned his face into her neck and was trailing wet, bruising kisses down the side and trying to push his hips against her. She wanted him like that and she would gladly take a little pain in order to wrap her legs around his hips.

When she did just that, he cursed and pulled away before reaching down and undoing his jeans and pushing them down just enough to free his erection. It didn't matter how many times she had seen him naked or touched him, she still sucked in a little breath at the sight of him taking himself in his hand and stroking a few times before he let her take over.

She wasn't going to replace his hand with hers this time or her mouth. Instead, she shifted her hips and tugged her panties down to dangle with her jeans on one leg the grabbed him again.

"Good lord," he muttered then bit her bottom lip. "Ya sure?"

"Yes, please," she said in a breathy whisper as he trailed the head of his dick over her clit. He nodded and Beth watched as he looked down, staring as he made another pass over her skin before pressing just a little inside.

Daryl licked his bottom lip then went a little further before pulling out and doing it all over again. He seemed lost in the sight, and Beth had to admit that watching his actions and the intent look on his face had to be one of the most erotic things she had ever witnessed.

Daryl raised a hand to the side of her neck and rubbed his thumb over her skin. "Ya like it," he said quietly.

She didn't deny it. The gasps and groans that had been escaping her lips told him all he needed to know.

"Fuck," he mumbled on a small down stroke, letting himself go just a bit further in and teasing her just a little more. "It's so damn good."

"Keep goin'," she whined and Daryl groaned loudly as he slid all the way inside.

He kissed her as he began moving his hips. When he started to end the kiss and move back, she sucked on his tongue and his pace faltered. Daryl pulled away altogether and leaned their foreheads together.

"Watch," he said with a gasp as his hips met hers.

Beth looked down and took in the sight of him disappearing into her body then pulling out, her wetness coating him. She tilted her hips a little, trying to meet him faster. His hand on her hip tightened and he pulled her leg further out, opening her up more.

"Sonofabitch," he groaned and started to laugh a little. "You're gonna make me come."

"I'm not even doin' anythin'," Beth whispered. "You're doin' all the work."

"Ya don't gotta do a damn thing," he said and picked up the pace again. "It's just you. Everythin' about ya," he finished in an almost whimper.

Beth grinned and tightened a hand in his hair and brought her other hand to her mouth, mimicking his motions from earlier, she licked the tips of her fingers and slid them down to where they met.

Daryl's breathing hitched and he slammed into her forcefully. Her fingertips slipped over her wet, swollen skin as she started to feel that familiar tightening in her stomach. Beth gasped as she fell over the edge, the fingernails of her free hand biting into the back of Daryl's neck.

His response was immediate, and he yanked himself away from her, almost making her fall off the counter, as he came in spurts against the inside of her thigh. "Damn," he sighed and collapsed against her.

Beth ran her hands over his back and traced the top part of the angel wings on his vest.

"That was really, really good," she said with a smile.

"It sure as hell was," he agreed. "Don't know why I tried to put that off."

"You were bein' careful." She said as Daryl stood up and straightened up his jeans. Daryl nodded and helped her down.

"I love ya," she said and kissed him softly.

He looked at her intently, and Beth sucked in a soft breath when she realized what he was fixing to say. Just as he was about to speak, the jingle of the security wire made them both look up suddenly.

The moment was gone when he turned back toward her and Daryl looked away. "I'm gonna give that mutt one more shot," he said as Beth pulled her jeans back up and slipped on her boot.

She cringed a little but Daryl didn't notice. He was too busy getting the pig's foot out of the jar. Daryl went out of the kitchen, and Beth followed slowly with her smile still planted on her face.

She turned the corner as Daryl pulled open the door only to try and slam it shut against the small herd of walkers that were on the other side. "No," she whispered and started to run for the door, helping him push it closed.

"Run," he whispered. "Go!" He yelled and tried to push her away.

Beth ran to the wall and tossed him his bow. "I'm not leavin' ya!"

"I'll meet ya at the road," he said, and the herd behind the door finally pushed hard enough to move Daryl and make him stumble a little.

She ran back through the kitchen then down the hall with Daryl on her heels.

"Get your shit! Pry open a window," he hollered as he led the walkers away from her and down to the basement.

Her ankle screamed in protest as she hopped from a window with their little backpack on her back and her bow in her hand.

Once she got down, she started for the road, dodging walkers left and right. On the dirt road, she couldn't dodge them anymore and had to fight off a couple of them. Her knife was all she had since she didn't have enough time load and shoot the bow.

She had managed to take down two when a third she hadn't seen grabbed her arm from behind, she flung her other arm around to stab it when it fell suddenly.

At first she thought it must have been Daryl, but soon she realized how wrong she was as she stood face-to-face with two men in police uniforms.

Beth backed away, looking for Daryl.

"C'mon, darlin'," the one on the left said. "Don't be that way. I just saved your life."

"I appreciate your help, but I can take care of myself," Beth said.

"Ya owe us," he said and the other officer stepped toward her.

She tried to run but between her ankle and the man grabbing her hair, she fell to the ground.

Beth held tightly to her knife as she tried to slash at the man behind her, but a fist slammed into her face causing her vision to blur, and she lost hold of the hilt. She kicked her legs as hard as she could, but the man was on top of her, and he pulled her head back before slamming her head into the ground twice.

She blacked out and woke up as she was being dragged toward a car down the road. Beth struggled against their hold but her head still swam and she had no weapon.

"Let her go!" Daryl's voice cut through the fog and she got pulled up to her feet with cold metal pressed to her temple. "Let her go now, and I'll let y'all walk away," Daryl barked out.

"Don't really see how ya have any leverage," the man holding her said. His hand slipped from her shoulder toward her breast where he let it rest for a second before squeezing. "Ya shoot at me, ya either hit her or hit me then I shoot her."

Beth's vision cleared enough to locked eyes with Daryl, and she tried to get out of the man's grip. He squeezed her breast harder and pressed the gun into her temple with more force.

"Don't be like that," he whispered into her ear. Beth fought against the urge to pass out and slumped a little in her attacker's arms.

Daryl looked like he was about to take his chances and shoot at the man when they all turned their head at the gurgling sound to their right.

The other officer had fallen to his knees, clutching at his throat as blood spilled over his hands. The man's hold eased up, and Beth dropped to the ground right as an arrow pierced his eye and went straight through his skull.

Her stomach rolled and Merle took two steps to catch her before she landed on her face.

"I got ya, girlie," he said quietly, and Beth let the darkness take her.

* * *

Merle grabbed her pack and bow after Daryl picked Beth up and clutched her to his chest.

"Get in the back of the car," Merle ordered.

His brother nodded and went to the car and loaded Beth in, getting in right behind her.

He was pale and shaky, and Merle was equally terrified. Had he decided to stay in Griffin searching instead of coming back to rest, Daryl would be dead and Beth would wish she was.

He took the guns off the cops and retrieved Daryl's bolt. He stopped at the man with the slit throat and spit on the ground beside him. "Rot in hell," he said to both of the men then went to the driver's side door.

Once he was inside, he looked back at Daryl who was cradling Beth close to his chest and Merle ignored the wetness under his eyes.

He turned around and looked over the car, noticing the map of Atlanta with a _Grady Memorial Hospital_ highlighted on it. He shook his head as the radio squawked. "Gorman, report in."

It was a female voice, and she sounded pissed.

Merle took a deep breath and picked up the radio. "Gorman ain't gonna be able to talk to ya no more."

The line went silent for several seconds, and Merle cranked up the car and started driving. The walkers had gathered around the two dead men and started eating them, and Merle was ready to get out of there.

"Who am I speaking with?"

Merle snorted. "None of your damn business. Who the fuck do ya think ya are tryin' to send your men out to steal people? Just what did ya need from my brother's woman?"

"We need help to sustain the community in which we live. If they saved her life, they would demand repayment." The woman was detached and cold. Merle knew the type too well.

"And as long as ya let 'em have a go with the prisoners, they let ya think you're in charge?" Merle asked as he pulled out on the main road. The woman didn't answer and Merle cleared his throat. "Tell ya what, sweetheart, ya better be glad that I don't take my ass to Atlanta and burn down your fuckin' hospital. Keep that shit in mind in the future. Y'all are gonna fuck with the wrong people one day."

The woman started to speak but Merle turned the CB off and pressed his foot on the gas, getting them as far away from the funeral home as he could.


	13. Chapter 13

Ch. 13

This chapter moves us along. I hope you like it.

* * *

Merle drove through the night, looking back every once in a while to check on Beth and Daryl.

Beth was in and out of consciousness for a while before finally being able to sit up on her own. After the sun rose, they had to stop a few times for her to throw up. Concussions were a bitch that way. Daryl would hold her hair when she puked and try and get her to drink water, but when he looked at Merle, he shut down.

Merle wondered why, but then figured it was because he didn't like to be seen as weak or that he'd let her get hurt. It didn't matter, though. He knew Daryl, and Daryl wasn't the kind of man that would have gone down without a fight.

When the car finally ran out of gas at a crossroads, Merle got out and looked around the area. There were some train tracks in front of them and a really nice house off to the right. If they needed to, they could probably stay there the night then head out in the morning.

"Merle?" Beth called his name very softly and squinted against the sunlight as Daryl helped her out of the car.

"Yeah?" He asked and reached out an arm to steady her as she walked forward.

She hugged him then, tighter than he could ever imagine and whispered, "Thank ya for comin' back."

"I's always comin' back," he muttered and pushed her away gently. Daryl pulled her to him and looked up at Merle. "Y'all coulda taken care of yaselves. Don't go makin' me out to be somethin' I ain't."

Beth nodded but the smile she sent him told Merle that she could see straight through his front. He was just about to suggest staying in the house when a group of men seem to appear out of nowhere right behind them.

* * *

The leader was the different kind of guy.

Daryl knew that the moment he locked eyes with him.

He analyzed the three of them before his eyes settled on Merle's knife hand. "What the fuck happened there?"

"It was in my way," Merle answered with a shrug.

The older man smirked and nodded. "We're gonna need your weapons and maybe the girl."

Daryl had to fight back the urge to charge the man and lay his ass out. Merle wasn't so calm, though, and when one of the group members walked forward to take his gun, Merle slammed his the metal part of his knife hand against the side of the man's head, downing him in an instant.

The others drew their weapons and Daryl raised his bow. "Let's just slow down," he said and tried to hold up Beth who had slumped a little. "Take the weapons and the packs, but ya ain't gettin' her."

"I'll beat y'all both senseless then make ya watch what we do to her then I'll kill ya both and take her anyway," he said easily.

Daryl lowered his bow and acted like he was going to sit it on the ground at the man's feet, but when he walked forward, he swung up with all his might, knocking the man backward.

He pulled his bow back up and aimed. "That's a nice weapon," he said to Daryl with a laugh. "Been lookin' for one just like that."

"Well, I changed my mind, ya ain't gettin' it."

The man studied him for a moment then he looked to Beth and Merle. "Name's Joe."

"Daryl."

"Ain't ya gonna introduce us?" Joe asked and waved his hand toward the others.

He stared him down for a second then said, "My brother, Merle, and my wife, Beth."

"Wife?" Joe laughed. "So that's what they're callin' it nowadays."

Beth cleared her throat and opened her eyes. "I am. He didn't do anythin' I didn't deserve," she lied way to fucking easily and his nostrils flared a little at the thought of someone laying a hand on her. Beth moved to the backseat of the car. "I need to lay down," she said and slipped into the car.

Joe looked around the group and smiled. "This is how I see it. Y'all can come with us or we can kill ya both here and just keep everythin' else for ourselves."

Daryl looked to Merle. His lips were a thin line and his jaw was tense but he nodded anyway. "Fine," Daryl said. "She ain't in no shape to be movin', though. Got a fuckin' concussion."

Joe shrugged. "She'll walk or you'll carry her, but we're movin'."

* * *

Beth was shaken awake, and she smiled at Daryl before closing her eyes again. "I need ya to get up and follow me."

"No, ya lay down with me," she said quietly, her words were slurred even to her own ears.

"Beth," he said her name and shook her again.

This time she sat up and put her hand against his cheek. "Ya were gonna say ya loved me last night," she heard herself whisper and Daryl's eyes closed. She looked past his shoulder to see the group of men standing over by the train tracks and tensed up, remembering everything all at once.

"Just take your bow and stick close," he said. "Kill anybody that touches ya and run. Don't worry about me and Merle. We can handle ourselves."

Without a doubt, Beth was still woozy, but she would have to pull it together if they were going to get out of this alive.

"How ya doin', darlin'?" Joe asked as she stepped out of the car, slinging her bow over her shoulder.

"Fine," she answered softly and squinted her eyes against the sunlight then followed after Daryl.

They all walked to the train tracks and went west. After a couple of miles, Merle asked, "Why Atlanta?"

Joe smirked. "We're trackin' a walkin' piece of fecal matter that killed one of our friends."

Merle hummed in response and nodded, seemingly satisfied with his answer.

The rest of the day they walked in silence, but Beth knew she was getting stares from the men walking behind her. Daryl would touch her shoulder every now and again, but when she looked into his eyes, she saw his desperation and had to look away.

Merle was never far from her either, but he didn't touch her at all. When she thought about it, she wondered if it was a conscious decision. That way the other men knew that he wasn't with her like that. Maybe it was his way of offering another layer of protection.

When they set up camp that night, Daryl laid down their stuff at the edge of camp. He sat down and pulled her between his legs with her back to his chest while Merle sat down beside them.

"Gonna run?" He asked in a whisper.

"First chance we get," Daryl answered back.

The sat in silence as the other men ate and talked. Beth tried hard to stay awake, but her head throbbed. Before she knew it, she had fallen asleep with her head against Daryl's shoulder.

* * *

He didn't move her, and he didn't sleep at all. He gripped his knife the entire night, waiting for someone to try and take her from him.

When the sun started to rise, he gently woke her up and nodded his head to the woods.

"Let's go find somethin' to eat."

Beth followed him into the woods, holding her bow at her side. When they were a far enough away, he asked, "Your head okay?"

"Yeah. It's sore, but I don't feel as sick to my stomach anymore."

He nodded and looked at the ground before heading off in a different direction. A rabbit had been through recently, and that would be good for her to have.

Her footsteps were light behind his, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

_She was still there. _

He stopped and looked back at her then said, "C'mere." Beth walked to stand in front of him and she smiled at him. Daryl gave her a short kiss before he said, "We ain't never fuckin' again."

"What?" She asked with her forehead scrunched up.

"First time, everybody got sick. Second time, the prison fell. Third time, ya almost got kidnapped and were beaten then we found these assholes. We ain't never fuckin' again."

Beth watched him for a few seconds before she broke out into a loud laugh that she covered up just as quickly as it came out.

"I love ya," she said. "Even with things so up in the air, I can't help but think about how much I love ya, Daryl."

He felt himself grin a little. "Let's get this rabbit."

Nearly an hour later, he had it in his sights. Beth wanted to try, but when she concentrated too hard, her head would start hurting worse.

Right as he pulled the trigger, a second arrow flew right beside his face. He turned and immediately caught the stare of one of Joe's men. He was the one who had been eyeing Beth across the campfire when he thought Daryl was sleeping.

"Claimed," he said and walked to the rabbit.

Daryl took off for it, too, and got their first. He threw the other guy's arrow out in the to the woods and held onto his own before walking back to Beth. "Let's go," he said and pushed her forward.

"That's my cottontail," he said from behind them.

He grabbed the legs and pulled and Daryl turned, pulling his knife from his sheath.

"Now, let's just wait a second," Joe's voice sounded from their left.

Everyone turned but Daryl didn't drop the rabbit.

"It's mine, Joe. I claimed it."

"Me and Beth have been trackin' this thing since sunrise. It's ours."

Joe looked between them. "He don't know the rules, Len. Can't fault a man for rules he don't know." With a smirk, Joe took the rabbit from their hands and chopped in in half against a nearby tree. "Ass end's still an end."

Len stomped off and Daryl looked down at the half of rabbit that had been tossed his way.

"It's no good now," Beth whispered, remembering what he taught her about some organs tainting the meat if they got cut when cleaning the animal.

Daryl looked over at her and shook his head for her to be quiet, but Joe walked to stand in front of her.

"I ain't stupid. Ya ain't his wife, and he sure as hell didn't put his hands on ya. Not with how he was hangin' onto ya all night. I know men that beat their women, and he ain't one of 'em."

Beth set her jaw and didn't say a word.

"Y'all are together, and I can respect that. All ya gotta do is play by my rules, sweetheart, and in a few days, I'll let ya walk outta here scot-free."

Daryl closed the distance between them and pulled Beth to his side. "Whatcha want?"

"Just some helpin' findin' this guy. That's all." Daryl looked back at Beth who shrugged. "Play by the rules and find this guy, and in a few days, off ya go."

"What're the rules?" Beth asked from behind Daryl.

"If ya want somethin' 'claim' it. It stops things from goin' Darwin every five minutes. Once it's claimed, it's yours and yours alone." He looked back and Beth and raised an eyebrow at Daryl. "Next is don't lie. Ever. I'm lettin' yesterday slip 'cause ya didn't know us, but from this moment forward, ya tell a lie, ya pay the bill."

"And what's that?" Merle asked from out of nowhere.

"A beatin'," Joe answered. "The severity of which depends on the offense and the general attitude of the day."

"She can't be walkin' around for hours at a time," Merle said and shook his head. "She needs to rest."

Joe eyed him curiously for a second then said, "What do ya propose then, big brother?"

"Let 'em go, and I'll help ya find whoever it is your dealin' with."

"No," Beth said before Daryl could even get it out. "Absolutely not."

"It ain't your choice," Merle said firmly.

Joe watched Beth, and he shook his head. "All of ya stay until the deal is done."

Before they could challenge him again, he walked back in the direction of camp.

"We're fucked," Merle said and sighed. "He ain't never gonna let us go. We're gonna have to kill 'em."

"Or sneak off in the middle of the night and find a car and haul ass outta this area," Daryl said and reached for Beth's hand. Their fingers twisted together, and he pulled her back to camp. "Right now, we play the game."

* * *

The moment they had entered camp, Daryl pulled Beth in front of him and said, "Claimed. She's mine. Any of y'all touch her, I'll kill ya."

That made Joe smile and laugh. "Ya heard the man, Little Bo Peep over there is off limits now."

"I didn't know we could claim her!" One of the men said angrily. "I'd have done that last night! Thought we was sharin' her."

"Not this time," Joe said and picked up his pack. "We got bigger shit to worry about right now than gettin' pussy. We gotta get the man that killed Lou. Now that Daryl's claimed her, y'all can all worry about the asshole we're followin'."

"Didn't say shit about not lookin', though," Len said and drug his eyes over Beth's body.

Merle looked over every member of the group.

Before this was all over, every single one of them would be dead.

* * *

That afternoon, they found an abandoned auto garage to bunk in, but they were the last ones through and all the cars were already claimed.

A balding, fat fucker leaned against the side of the truck that was his for the night and looked to his brother and Beth and said, "Ya let us watch her blow ya, I'll let ya have the truck."

Daryl straightened up, and somehow Beth knew not to touch him, not to let them see she had any type of control over him at all. She just looked at the ground and wrung her hands together.

Merle watched as Daryl walked across the cement floor to where the man stood, a friendly smirk across his face. "Ya wanna watch her suck my dick?" He asked evenly.

"Hell yeah," the man answered. "Ain't watched a porno in a long time, and sure as hell never seen one right in front of me."

"But she ain't the first girl ya've thought about like that since all this shit started," Daryl stated. "She ain't the first ya've taken against her will."

"I didn't rape that bitch," he said and shook his head.

"I bet ya've thought of it a million times since y'all found us." The man shrugged a little. "That's where it's gonna stay, too," Daryl said quietly then he backed up and went to Beth who was trying to seem unaffected.

"Watch your shit, Daryl," Merle said as they laid out their sleeping bags.

"I'm gonna gut everyone of these mothafuckers," he whispered. "You're sleepin' between us, girl." Beth laid down on the sleeping bag and curled into a little ball.

Only once that night did Merle get up, the rest of the time he laid a forearm's length away from Beth, staring at her and Daryl in the darkness, and listening for any sound that might have signaled the attack was coming.

If there was one thing he was sure of, it's that something was going to happen between them, and it was going to happen soon.

* * *

Daryl followed Beth outside so she could take a piss and Merle walked over to the tool rack on the far side of the garage. Everything was pretty well picked over, but he found a flat-head screwdriver in a drawer. Worst came to worst, he could give it to Beth, and she could stab someone in the neck with it.

Once he was back over at their bags, Beth and Daryl walked in through the door and started gathering up their stuff.

"It's gone," Len said loudly. "That bastard took my rabbit!" He came rushing across the open space between the cars at Daryl, and he immediately pushed Beth over to Merle, and Merle pushed her behind him.

"Didn't touch your rabbit," Daryl said and shook his head.

"It's gone! You're the only one with interest in what I had."

Daryl shook his head again, and Merle could see the anger brewing behind his eyes. "Didn't take you're fuckin' rabbit."

"Now, boys, we got a bit of a predicament here. Len says ya took it. You said ya didn't. Guess the only way to find out for sure is to look through your bag, Daryl," Joe said and picked up the pack he shared with Beth. Daryl reached for it, but Joe pulled it further out of his reach then dumped the contents onto the floor.

Sure enough, there was a rabbit head mixed in there.

"Ya sonofabitch!" Daryl hollered and started for Len. "Ya put that there! Ya waited until I went outside like some fuckin' pussy."

Len stood his ground and Joe looked between them. "Now, Len, this is a big offense. Are ya sayin' Daryl stole your rabbit?"

He met Daryl's eyes and nodded. "Yeah, he stole it from me."

Joe sighed. "Ya sure ya ain't some dirty, lyin' cop?" Len looked up at Joe and his eyes widened. "Teach him a lesson, boys," he pushed Len into the group of men. "Teach him all the way."

As the group went to beating the fuck out of Len, Joe turned and tossed the rabbit to Daryl. "Let this be a lesson to ya about followin' the rules."

"How'd ya know I was tellin' the truth, and he wasn't?" Daryl asked.

"I saw him do it," Joe answered.

"And ya were just gonna let it play out," Daryl said disbelievingly.

"Examples are always the most helpful way to teach a new concept to people. Remember that."

He walked away, and Beth went to pick everything up and put it back in their pack. Merle watched as she tuned everything out and worked. Once it was all put away, she went to the door and stepped outside, never once looking back.


	14. Chapter 14

Ch. 14

Sorry for the long break! This weekend was crazy!

I hope you like this one.

* * *

They threw Len's body outside the garage right before they left the garage. Beth had a moment of weakness where she wanted to cover him up, but at the last second, she changed her mind.

Daryl didn't say anything about it and neither did Merle, but she could tell they were worried she had snapped a little, and maybe she had.

Every single man in that group was a terrible person, both before and after the end of the world. A person didn't learn that kind of evil or give in to it once everything went to shit. It was the kind of bad that simmered in your soul and tainted everything around you.

With all that in mind, Beth kept a bolt ready in her bow and the sheath of her knife unbuttoned. If they were going to try something after they found this man they were tracking down, she was going to kill as many of them as she could before they got her.

Merle and Daryl watched her cautiously, and when no one was looking at them, Merle stood behind her and put something in between her belt and her jeans. "Just in case they take your knife," he whispered.

Her hand automatically went to the new weapon, a screwdriver in between her belt and jeans, and she nodded.

Night settled in, and instead of setting up camp, Joe told them to push forward. "We ain't never gonna catch this bastard if we sleep while he sleeps and move when he moves."

The three of them had slowed their pace and were at the back of the group when they heard the signal that they had found who they had been looking for.

"Let's go," Daryl whispered. "They found whoever it is."

"Wait," Beth whispered and looked him in the eyes. "We know these people. They're liars and killers. The person we've been trackin' could be just like us."

Daryl and Merle sighed and exchanged a quick look. "We'll check it out. See if it's someone like them then we decide from there," Daryl said and nodded over his shoulder.

When they made it to the others, Beth froze in horror as she saw Rick, Michonne, and Carl sitting in front of a fire.

Daryl caught Beth's arm and whispered, "Stay back."

Her horror turned to terror in a split second as he stepped forward and said, "Hey, ya ain't gonna do this. These are good people."

Merle raised his knife hand and stepped behind a man who was too interested in the scene Daryl was causing to notice. Beth pulled out her knife and moved closer to the man on her left. Right as she moved into position, the man who asked to watch her and Daryl picked up Carl and started to lean into his neck, dragging his nose against him.

Beth's heart pounded in her chest. She didn't even know what Joe said, but as soon as the man in front of her moved toward Daryl, she stepped out of the shadows and stabbed him in the throat.

* * *

Her hands were shaking when it was all over, and she stared off into the distance. She knew that Rick was on the other side of the truck in a similar position. He was shaken because his son had almost been raped in front of his eyes, and he ripped a man's throat out with his teeth. Beth was shaking because she had taken her first life, and she didn't feel guilt at all.

"Here," Daryl said and handed her a bottle of water and his red rag. "Ya alright?"

She nodded.

"I'm gonna talk to Rick for just a second then I'll be back, okay?"

"I'm good," she spoke in a soft voice. "Check on him."

He rounded the truck again and Merle sat down beside her. "Ya sure you're alright?"

Beth paused for several seconds and looked over at him. "Have ya ever killed someone that didn't deserve it?"

Merle tightened his jaw and looked away. "Yeah. I've killed good people."

"Do ya feel bad about it?" She asked and watched as he turned back toward her.

"Sometimes."

"Why only sometimes?"

He shrugged and looked at his knife hand. "The good people I killed were so I could stay alive in the long run. Sometimes I feel bad that I'm here and they're not. Sometimes, like last night or the night at the funeral home, I'm glad I killed 'em 'cause if I hadn't've, then y'all'd be dead."

Beth sighed and nodded. "You're a good person. You're just a little rough around the edges."

"I'd kill anyone who tried to hurt y'all," he whispered. "Y'all are the only family I got left."

"Ya might be my only family, too," she said and closed her eyes, fighting back tears. "I might be the only Greene left."

"Then I guess you'll just have to go by Dixon. Finally bring some polish to the old family name," he joked and stood up.

Beth didn't know what to say, but she watched him walk to the open truck door and peek in on Michonne and Carl. He said something really soft so Beth couldn't hear before moving around to where Daryl and Rick were.

One day, after they found someplace safe, she would tell Daryl that his brother proposed for him.

* * *

_Terminus. _

_All those who arrive. Survive._

Daryl thought it was a whole bunch of bullshit, Merle didn't like it, and Beth seemed wary, but hopeful.

Rick thought it could be the answer to everything, and that maybe some of the others had gone there, so Daryl figured they could at least go and see what it was.

After scouting the location briefly, they left the majority of their weapons in the duffle bag in the woods before hopping the back fence. Everything was quiet and there didn't seem to be anyone on guard duty.

That instantly made him feel uneasy. A place as big as Terminus with chain link fences needed protection and people on watch. A herd of walkers could take down fences like that quick.

He desperately wanted to keep Beth safe, and if this place offered that, he would be grateful, but these people would know they needed better protection, especially if his group could get as far as they did without meeting a single soul. If it was another Woodbury, he would tear this place apart. Beth had experienced way too much shit in a short period of time, and Daryl needed to finally do something right. He'd be damned if he opened the proverbial door again and let something fuck up their lives.

As they walked through an open door, they saw a group of people milling around, making the signs that had been along the railroad tracks, and there was a little old lady broadcasting something over the radio. It dawned on him that he had heard what she was saying on the radio months ago but couldn't make out until now.

"Oh, hey." A young guy stepped forward as they walked toward them. "You could've used the front door. That's where it looks the best. Back this way is where the grunt work happens."

"Yeah, we'll we wanted to see y'all before y'all saw us," Rick said and looked around.

"You're cautious. That's good," the same guy said. "I'm Gareth."

The group continued to stare for a moment then he shook his head. "Just lay your weapons down for a minute, and we'll check you over and show you to the front."

Slowly, everyone laid their weapons down while another guy ran over and started patting them down to make sure that was all they had.

"Wow, y'all are really beat up," the kid said as he checked Daryl over for weapons. He looked at Beth who stood beside him. "Y'all do this to each other?"

"No," she whispered.

"Guess I don't wanna see the other guy then?" He tried to laugh and break the tension.

"No, you wouldn't," Rick said and raised an eyebrow at the young guy.

"the guy who did this is long dead," Beth added and met his eyes. Whatever the kid saw there must have scared him a little because he backed away and went to Merle next, which was worse than dealing with Beth. Merle knew how to press everyone's buttons.

"If you'll follow me, I'll take you to the front. That's where the welcome wagon is. From there, you'll get a tour, and we'll show you what we're all about here."

They followed behind Gareth silently. Daryl looked over everything they passed. The huge empty rooms, the tiny walkways made between the roofs above them, the potted plants that started lining the sides of the buildings as they got closer to the front gate.

The woman manning the barbeque pit smiled when they walked up. "I heard ya came in the back. That's smart," she said and picked up a plate of food. "We've got lots."

Daryl gripped Beth's hand and tugged her to his side. They had lots of meat, but Daryl didn't see any animals. He did see people sitting at tables across from him, though, and when Rick caught his gaze Daryl nodded.

That was his poncho across the way. Glenn's riot gear on another. A pocket watch chain hanging from the kid's pants that had checked them for weapons.

Everything happened fast, and when Rick moved Daryl raised his bow, Beth did the same a split second after.

"Where did ya get this watch?" Rick asked with his gun pointed at the young guy's head.

Gareth stepped forward and calmly said, "You want answers or anything else, you'll get them when you put the gun down."

Daryl met Rick's eyes and tilted his head up. Rick followed his line of sight and said, "I see your man on the roof. How good's his aim?" When Gareth wouldn't answer, Rick asked again, "Where'd ya get the watch?"

People from the tables started making their way to the barbeque pit, and Gareth shook his head. "Don't do anything. I have this."

Daryl watched as they backed off and the snipers seemed to ease their posture.

"Where'd ya get the watch?"

Daryl felt that this was the last time Rick was going to ask, and he wished he could have taken better care of Beth. Protected her from all this.

"I got it off a dead one. I didn't figure he'd need it," Gareth lied effortlessly.

"What about the riot gear? the poncho?"

"Got the riot gear off a dead cop," he said and shrugged like he was stating something anyone should have realized. "Found the poncho on a clothes line."

"Gareth, we can wait," the young guy said from in front of Rick.

"Shut up, Alex," he said.

Rick tightened his hold on Alex and looked to Gareth, "You talk to me."

"What's left to say?" Gareth said and held his hands up for a moment. "You don't trust us anymore."

"Gareth," Alex said again.

"Shut up," Gareth said, still staring down Rick.

"Gareth, please!"

Finally, Gareth looked to Alex and said, "It's okay." Then looked back to Rick. "What do you want?"

"Where are our people?" Rick asked, his voice turning colder than Daryl had ever heard it.

"You didn't answer the question," Gareth said then quickly moved back as the bullets started flying.

* * *

They ran into a room lit with candles and writings and small knick-knacks all over the place.

"What the fuck is this?" Daryl mumbled.

Beth squeezed his hand hard and whispered. "It's a memorial."

They wasted no time finding the exit, but as soon as they got back outside, the gunfire started all over again.

They raced through the train depot, trying to stay in a group at first, but quickly realizing that they were being herded in the direction that Gareth wanted them to go. Daryl grabbed Beth's arm and pulled her close behind him as the bullets bounced off the pavement.

The noise was going to bring down a fuck ton of walkers, and there was no way they would be able to get out through the woods if that was the case. Merle ran on his other side, watching the people on the roofs.

"These people ain't tryin' to kill us," Merle yelled.

"No, they're not. They're aiming at our feet," Rick said and shook his head as they came to a dead end.

Beth was panting and held on tightly to his hand as Gareth came into view again.

"Drop your weapons. Now!" The all paused for a second before laying them on the ground. Gareth looked to Merle and pointed at his hand. "That too. Take it off and put it on the ground."

Merle took a deep breath, reining in some smart-ass comment, before unbuckling his knife hand and laying it to the side and kicking it away.

"This is how it's going to work. The kid and blondie, move to the side." Beth's eyes widened, and she took a step closer to Daryl while Rick latched onto Carl's arm. "The train car. Go. You do what we say and the kid and the girl will follow you. Anyone else makes a move, and they'll die, and you still end up in the train car."

Beth pried her hand away from Daryl. "It'll be okay," she whispered. He met her eyes, and she sent him a shaky grin. "Hey, I love ya. I'll be right behind ya."

Once she was away from the group, Carl joined her and she wrapped her arm around his shoulders.

"Good," Gareth yelled down to them. "Now, you'll go in this order. Ringleader, archer, samurai, and blade."

Daryl should have been more focused on their surroundings and how to get out of that train car they were being led to, but he couldn't take his eyes of Beth and the shooters poised beside Gareth and on the roof.

"My son!" Rick yelled as he reached the steps.

Gareth looked to Beth and Carl. "Go, kid." When Carl got to walking, Gareth continued, "Ringleader, open the door and go inside."

"I'll go with him," Rick said and waited on the bottom step for Carl.

"Don't make us kill him now," Gareth said in tired voice.

Rick looked back at Daryl who nodded at him. He would watch out for Carl until he was inside the train car.

"Now, go on, archer," he said and pointed to the steps as Carl went inside.

Daryl clenched his jaw and pointed back at Beth, not saying a word.

"She'll go next," Gareth assured him.

"Let her go first. I can't do shit anyway, right?"

"A man who knows when he's been beat." Daryl didn't move or speak. "Go on, blondie."

She walked past Daryl and as she did, he grabbed her hand and tugged her along and up the stairs.

It took him a few seconds to adjust to the darkness, and by that time, Michonne and Merle had entered the train car and the door and been shut behind them. He had Beth wrapped in his arms, shifting them from side-to-side.

"Rick?"

Daryl pulled away and looked into the far end of the train car.

One by one, he made out their faces, and Beth rushed from his arms to Maggie, hugging her tightly. Glenn was to her left and Sasha and Bob on her right with a few other people standing in the back.

"I knew ya made it out with him," Maggie said and rocked Beth.

"I knew y'all did, too, but we never found the bus, and we couldn't go back to track anyone."

Glenn stepped forward and pointed out the people they didn't know. "These are friends. They helped us."

"Then I guess they're our friends, too," Daryl said and looked over the group.

Merle walked over and stood at his side.

"You always seem to make it out of the shittest situations," Glenn said and looked away.

"What can I say," Merle said and held out his hands from his side. "I live to make your life hell."

Rick shook his head and walked to the door, peeking out through the small opening. Beth walked back to Daryl's side and hugged his waist. Everyone was quiet for a several seconds. He imagined they were in same boat as him, confused and mad as hell.

Finally Rick voiced everything they were feeling. "They're gonna feel pretty stupid when they find out," he said quietly, his eyes narrowing as he watched what was going on outside.

"Find out what?" One of the new guys asked.

Rick turned to face the group, and Daryl saw the same look in his eyes from the night before.

"They're fuckin' with the wrong people."


	15. Chapter 15

Ch. 15

Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing!

* * *

It was an unspoken agreement that any catching up would be done while they tried to create weapons from whatever they had in the train car.

Sasha asked if they had seen Tyreese, but no one had.

Merle asked if anyone had run into Carol, but no luck either.

Beth was going to ask about Judith, but when she saw the way Rick and Carl stood stoically as everyone discussed their missing family members, she knew that something terrible had happened.

"What happened to your face?" Maggie asked as she worked their daddy's pocket watch chain into the side of the train car to carve out a sharp spike of wood.

"Got ambushed," she answered quietly and looked around, as everyone tried to fashion weapon out of something. Her shirt hung low enough that they never noticed the screwdriver in her belt, so she reached back and took it out, holding it at her side.

"By who?" Her sister pressed, but Beth didn't want to talk about it. She hadn't even fully processed it herself.

"A couple of guys. Merle and Daryl killed 'em."

Maggie stopped and met Beth's eyes. "Did they…" She trailed off and Beth knew what she was asking.

"No, but they would've." She looked over at Daryl who was keeping watch. It was the furthest he had been away from her since they got locked inside.

Maggie put the watch away and sighed. Beth looked up at the sound and saw tears filling her eyes.

"We can't yet," Beth whispered. "We can't think of it. Not until we're outta here."

She nodded and wiped her eyes. "I know. I just—God, Beth. Things fell apart so quick."

"Yeah," Beth agreed and took her sister's hand. "They sure have."

* * *

Daryl was watching the movement around the train cars. They had split into groups of four and some were headed their way and the others to train car further down the line.

"Got four of them pricks headed this way," he said and took a few steps back and over to Beth.

"Y'all know what to do," Rick said. "Go for their eyes first. Then their throats."

They banged against the railcar door and Daryl pushed Beth a little further behind him. "Step away from the door and move toward the ends of the car."

He watched the door intently when a hatch lifted on top of the car and someone dropped in a small silver canister.

The Army guy, Abraham, saw it and immediately yelled, "Move!" And pushed anyone near him away as the canister exploded and smoke filled the space.

The loud noise threw him off, and Beth got pushed to the side of the car. His head was spinning as he saw a man enter and grab her arm.

"No!" He shouted and ran forward, smashing his forearm against the man's face.

He took a swift kick to the back of his knees and fell to the floor. "We wanted you anyway," the man said as he hauled him up.

Daryl fought against his hold, but ended up thrown from the train car and landing hard against the concrete. His vision blurred as they zip tied his hands behind his back and another man gagged him.

Daryl's breath was coming out in harsh pants as he tried to get his bearings but was pushed toward a building instead. Once inside, he saw four other men already line up, kneeling beside a trough.

Glenn got pushed to his knees first then Daryl beside him followed by Rick and Bob.

He pulled his wrists and the plastic bit into his skin as he struggled to free himself. Others were trying to get free, too, but it wasn't working. He heard the crack of a bat against bone and looked down the line just in time to see one of the butchers pull up the guy by his hair and slit his throat, blood spewing forward, and they slumped him over the edge of the trough as he bled out.

He thought he was having a heart attack as they proceeded to work their way down the line. His wrists were bleeding as he tried to get out of the bindings, and he thought about Beth. She was locked up in that train car, and if he didn't get out, she would wind up just like him, and that was something that he couldn't let happen.

Daryl Dixon wouldn't go out like some fucking cow at a slaughterhouse.

"Hey!" The voice from the door made everything pause and the douchebag that ran the place walked through the door with a journal in his hands. "What were your shell counts?"

The men in charge of the killing started talking, and Daryl knew they didn't have much time. Glenn was next on the chopping block, so they needed to work fast.

It was at that moment that Daryl looked to Rick who was moving his hands just like Daryl was, but he caught the flash of wood working against the zip ties and swallowed hard.

Out of his peripheral, he saw the man draw back the bat again, and he flinched to the side a little as Glenn curled forward.

"I need your shell count," Gareth said again and the man stopped and started apologizing about it being his first go or some shit.

Daryl had almost gotten his thumb through the restraints and once he had that the rest would follow easily. He had skinned it deep enough to bleed, but it didn't fucking matter.

When he thought they were going to start back up, Bob started moving around, talking and Gareth came forward and removed the gag. He began pleading for their lives, saying that Eugene knew about a cure, that the world could change, but Daryl saw the resolve in Gareth's eyes. This man had nothing left inside of him that would listen to the pleas of his captures—his food.

The zip tie caught on the hangnail of his thumb, and he wanted to beat his own ass for the nervous habit of biting them. Now, he would have to tear off his fucking nail just to get out and try not to flinch in the process.

He was about to do just that, when Gareth turned to Rick.

"We saw you go into the woods with a bag of weapons. You came out without the bag, so we want to know where you stashed and what's inside."

Rick didn't speak and Gareth pulled Bob forward, a knife at his eyeball. "What was in the bag? I'm curious. It was a big bag, Rick."

"I'll show ya," he said quietly.

"Not gonna happen."

The look in Rick's eyes was the same one that he had the previous night with Joe's group, and Daryl didn't think that, even if they got away, it would ever leave him. The man was not who he used to be. Neither was Daryl, but someone had shifted in Rick completely, and if things went the way he hoped, Gareth would feel that same wraith soon.

"There's guns in it," Rick said, his voice flat. "AK-47. Forty-four magnum. Automatic weapons. Nightscope. There's a compound bow," he paused and tilted his head to the side and finished, "and a machete with a red handle." Another small pause and he looked directly at Gareth and said, "That's what I'm gonna use to kill you."

Garth laughed. "Thanks."

He stood up, and Daryl went back to removing his hand from the ties, his thumbnail, tearing as he did. He was almost free when gunshots sounded from the outside, and Gareth barked out some orders and ran from the room, the two men in charge of killing them were stunned by the noise and the sudden explosion that rocked the building.

Rick was up on his feet, slitting one of their throats. The other man came at Rick with the baseball bat, and Daryl pushed off the trough with his chest and stumbled to his feet.

With all the force he had left, he tucked his shoulder and jumped as the man passed him, hitting him right in the stomach.

They landed and the man tried to push Daryl off, but someone grabbed the back of his shirt and tugged him away.

He saw that it was Rick and relaxed. Then watched as Rick picked up the baseball bat and beat the man on the floor until his head was caved in.

Rick cut the rest of them loose, and Daryl picked up a long knife to use as they left the building, and Glenn went toward the first man Rick had killed. As soon as he raised his knife to drive it through his skull, Rick spoke, "Leave 'em. Let 'em turn."

* * *

She screamed Daryl's name and tried to run for the door, but a strong arm circled her waist and pulled her back.

She looked to her right and saw Abraham pulling Maggie from the door, too.

"It's gonna be okay, blondie," Merle said against her ear. "That dickless bastard ain't gonna be able to take him down."

She shook her head and whispered, "No," over and over as she gripped Merle's arm.

"Let go, girl," he said and shook her off once the door was shut.

Beth looked down and saw that she her fingernails had broken the skin and little crescent shaped bloody lines stood out against his forearm.

"Sorry," she muttered.

"S'okay."

He went to the wall and went back to working on pulling out a riveted piece of metal.

Everyone seemed to be lost in their own world as their attempts to make weapons became more frantic.

Beth still held onto her screwdriver, but she went to the wood edge Maggie had been working on to try and pull it out and hand it off to someone. Once she got there, though, she saw that someone else had already taken it.

It was a few minutes later, after the silence became so heavy that Beth thought she was going to suffocate, that Eugene started talking about a way to blow open the door.

He was quickly shut down by Maggie.

"My dad's gonna be back," Carl said in a strong voice. "They all are." He looked over at Beth as he said that and then turned back to the door.

"We better be ready," Michonne said and took a deep breath.

A few seconds passed and as if on cue, they heard gunfire from outside the train car. Beth sighed and Merle walked to her side and nudged her shoulder.

"Ya stay behind me, ya hear? He'd kill me if I let ya end up dead."

Maggie eyed him before turning away, and Beth said, "I can take care of myself, Merle. Ya know that."

"Yeah, but we ain't never been in this position before."

More gunfire and an explosion that almost knocked the railcar over, and everyone was chomping at the bit to get out.

"Walkers'll come without a doubt," Carl said.

"Son a fuckin' dick," Abraham muttered and tried to pull on the door. "We gotta get outta here."

That moment, the door opened and Rick hollered, "Let's go! C'mon!"

She saw Daryl who had a long knife, fighting off walkers that had already managed to get in the yard and ran toward him. She put her screwdriver through the head of a walker that was almost on his back when she heard a growl over her right shoulder. Before she could turn and kill it, Daryl put his knife through its head.

"I could whoop your ass," he said and pulled her along behind the group. "Never worry about me. Get yaself out."

She shook her head and dodged walkers as they made their way to the fence. He didn't get it, but Beth thought maybe he did sometimes.

Without him, there wouldn't be much left of her.

* * *

Merle followed after the group, and it became pretty clear that the good people of Terminus weren't on their tail, but the stray walker definitely was.

No one slowed down or looked back. They barely paused long enough to retrieve the bag of weapons before starting to run again. When Rick felt they were far enough away, Merle guessed, he stopped and everyone stood there catching their breath.

Merle was leaned up against a tree, watching as Beth leaned against Daryl whose hands were shaking as he hugged her to him.

He wasn't sure he ever wanted to know what went down in that room they had taken him to.

A branch snapped behind him, and he turned to look and make sure it wasn't a walker. Nearly everyone sucked in a surprised breath at the same time, and Merle's strides ate up the distance between him and Carol.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and picked her up, pulling her tightly against him.

"Ya miss me?" She laughed quietly.

Merle nodded and sat her down before leaning his head against her shoulder. Carol brought up her hand and stroked the back of his neck.

After a few seconds, she moved away. "Figured you'd need this back," she said and pulled his knife prosthetic from her bag.

"Yeah." He took it from her and Rick came up beside them.

"Was that you?"

Merle's heart was beating harshly in his chest, and he thought about all the things he had wanted to say to her.

She passed Daryl his bow, and he hugged her first before he took it, slinging it over his shoulder then took Beth's hand again.

"C'mon," she said and nodded her head to the side. "There's some people that wanna see you."

She started walk, and Merle stood there watching. He should have felt an overwhelming happiness, but the dull look of Carol's eyes made him pause. If he had changed during his time away, it was certain that she had, too.

And it didn't look like it had been a good change.


	16. Chapter 16

Ch. 16

This chapter is like therapy for everyone involved. I hope you like it!

Also, this is going to be where we start leaving the series a little.

* * *

Beth woke up to Judith crying and tears welled up in her own eyes.

Everyone was back together, plus some new additions, and that beautiful little girl was crying. Beth opened her eyes against the tears and watched as Rick rocked her back and forth. She quieted down a little but didn't stop fussing. He had been very quiet since he got her back that afternoon.

Beth felt Daryl move behind her right before he spoke. "Ya wanna hold her, don't ya?"

"Yes," she breathed. "I don't want to interfere, though. He just got her back, and he's got more claim on her than I do."

Daryl flinched at the wording, but didn't say anything about it. "He ain't been asleep yet. Go ask him if ya can take her and sing to her or somethin'."

Beth rolled over to face Daryl. The old church they had found wasn't exactly the most comfortable, but they were all so tired and happy to be together again that it hadn't mattered. Their little pallet was against the far wall, away from the others, and behind some pews.

"Ya think?"

He nodded and kissed her softly. "Go on, arrow. Get those fuckin' baby cuddles ya been dreamin' about." She smiled wide and stood up.

Beth weaved her way through their sleeping group until she got to Rick. He watched her for a second then shrugged. "I can give it a try if ya want?"

He must have seen the hopefulness in her eyes because his grip eased up on Judith and he passed her over. "She'll prolly go right to sleep for ya. Carl always wanted his momma when it was night time."

"I'm not her momma," Beth said quietly and met Rick's eyes.

"I didn't mean it like that," he said and shook his head. "I'm just worn out."

Beth reached out and touched his arm. "I know what ya meant, and I love her. It just makes me sad that I'm here when her momma should get to see her grow up."

"Yeah," he said. "Me, too."

They stood together for a little while on the altar before Beth said, "Ya know, it ain't your fault what happened. To Lori or to the prison."

"It falls on my shoulders."

Beth nodded and sighed. "That's the funny thing about you and Daryl, ya think your shoulders are a lot bigger than they really are."

He huffed and put his hands on his hips. "What're ya tryin' to say?"

Judith turned her face into Beth's neck, and she cuddled her closer. "Nothin' really. Just, ya can't always take the blame, especially for things ya had no control over. Sometimes bad things happen, and we just gotta pick up and try and go on. My daddy woulda never wanted ya to feel such guilt for him. Neither would Lori. Look at us, Rick," she whispered and her eyes searched the room. "We made it."

"Not yet."

Beth shrugged. "I count this as a win."

She peeked down at Judith who was sleeping. "She's out again. Looks like you'll get to rest before we head out."

Once Judith was handed back over, he asked, "Ya get Daryl to forgive himself?"

Beth shook her head. "Nah, the hurt'll always be there, ya just gotta make room for it." Andrea's words escaped her lips and she felt a pang of saddness. "Ya just can't let it weigh ya down. There's too much good still here."

When she made it back to Daryl, he raised his arm up, and she slid under the blanket beside him.

"Get the snugglin' out?" Daryl asked against her shoulder.

"Nope," she said and wiggled back against him.

Daryl laughed softly and tightened his grip around her. Within a few minutes, she slipped into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

"So, you and Daryl seem to be attached at the hip," Maggie said the next morning as they sat around the campfire outside the church. Daryl had gone out into the woods for a minute, and Maggie took that opportunity to pounce on her.

Beth didn't mind it at all. She had missed Maggie, and Maggie had missed her, but there was guilt behind her eyes that always made Beth pause.

"You and Glenn are, too," Beth said quietly and smiled at her. "I understand why ya looked for him, ya know that, right?" She met Maggie's eyes and sent her a reassuring smile. "We didn't exactly make the best effort in lookin' for y'all either. There was so many dead ends. Hell, if Daryl didn't have a good idea where to look for y'all, then how were y'all supposed to find us?"

Maggie didn't say anything, but she squeezed her hand. "I keep seein' daddy in my dreams," she whispered.

"I do, too," Beth replied and looked at their twined fingers. "Ya think he knew that we'd be okay?"

Her sister nodded. "He knew we'd take care of each other, and he trusted Glenn and Daryl with our lives. I think he was at peace."

Beth nodded. "I'm gonna miss him so much. I haven't really let myself think about it, but now that we're back together, I am, and it hurts."

"Yeah," she whispered back. "It hurts so much."

Daryl came back at that moment and sat down on the other side of Beth. "Ya makin' her cry or the other way around?" He asked Beth.

"A little bit of both," she answered. "We were talkin' about daddy."

Daryl hummed. "He was a good man."

Beth leaned her head against Daryl's shoulder and held onto Maggie's hand. "He'd be happy we're all together again."

"Yeah," Maggie said. "Maybe it was him pullin' the strings?"

Beth opened her mouth to say something, but Abraham stood up and cleared his throat. "We need to talk about where we go from here."

Beth looked over at Daryl who was staring down the man. Him, Rosita, and Eugene were new. They weren't family, and as far as she was concerned, any debt to them had been paid after they got out of Terminus alive.

"Y'all all know that Eugene can flip the switch on this thing. We just have to get him to D.C."

"Well, right now, we don't have any way to make it that far," Rick said with a shrug.

"We can find transport," he said in that gruff, agitated voice of his.

Rick looked around the yard, and Beth knew his decision before he said anything. She turned and whispered to Daryl, "Looks like we takin' a road trip."

"Ain't never been outta Georgia before." He kept his eyes on Rick, and Beth leaned up and kissed his cheek. She thought he would turn red like he normally did, but instead, he turned his head a little before she moved away and kissed her lips softly. "First time for everythin' I guess."

"Yeah," Beth said through her own blush. "I guess so."

* * *

Merle had been keeping to himself, and he knew that no one really noticed. Daryl was all wrapped up in Beth and being free again.

Carol was lost in her own head, and he could tell that the space she had put between her and Tyreese was tense. Merle had tried to talk to her about it, but she avoided him. His final chance came when everyone was eating that night, and he watched Carol slip away.

He put down his can of beans and followed after her, only to find her at the car Daryl had mentioned them finding earlier that day.

"What're ya doin'?" He asked as he stepped out of the darkness.

She looked at him and sighed, defeated. "I don't know."

"What happened?"

Carol leaned back against the trunk of the car and shrugged. "A lot."

"Ya can tell me anythin', and ya know I won't judge ya for one fuckin' second."

She nodded, but closed her eyes tight like she was trying to hold it all inside. "We lost the girls. Almost lost Judith."

"Figured as much."

"Merle," she paused and met his eyes. "Lizzy stabbed Mika in the heart. She wanted her to change so that we'd see that the walkers are okay. She was about to stab Judith when Tyreese and I came back from pickin' up some pecans. We thought they would be safe inside the fence."

"Holy shit," he breathed out.

Carol started crying, wracking sobs and Merle knew what happened Lizzy. He didn't hesitate to walk over and wrap her in his arms.

"I'm so sorry, sweetheart. So fuckin' sorry."

She cried until the front of his shirt was wet with tears, and they were rocking back and forth.

"Ya know it ain't your fault. That girl was messed up."

"I shoulda seen it. I had this feelin' in my gut," she said quietly. "There was somethin' off."

"Ya couldn't have ever imagined that, Carol. Don't for one second put that on yaself."

She pulled away. "I told Tyreese what I did at the prison after we buried them."

Merle tensed up and looked down at her. "Did he do somethin' to ya?"

Carol shook her head and started crying again. "No. I even gave him my gun."

"Christ Almighty," Merle said, his heart thundering in his chest. How close had she come to dying and him never seeing her again?

"He said that he forgave me, Merle. He _forgave_ me." Carol shook her head. "How can he do that? How can he just let me get away with it?"

It all clicked into place, and he shook his head. "Do ya wanna be punished? Is that what this is? Ya leavin', banishin' yaself this time 'cause ya think ya need to be held accountable for what ya did?"

"Don't I?" She asked. "Rick did the right thing by sendin' me away. I don't deserve to be with this group."

"That's fuckin' bullshit, and ya know it. We've all done the worst kinda things to stay alive. We've all made mistakes. Ya wanna tally up whose killed more innocent people between you and me and figure out who really needs to leave?" He asked and started pacing. "Ya think that _you_ deserve to be tossed out like some fuckin' piece of trash for protectin' your people? I killed a boy in cold blood, left his fuckin' body in the middle of the woods. I helped kill a unit of National Guard soldiers so we could steal their fuckin' guns and caravan. Ya wanna compare who should be where? Then move outta my way 'cause it's me that needs to leave."

Carol stood there in shock. "When?"

"When I's at Woodbury, for the Governor. The boy I killed 'cause I lost Michonne and didn't want to end up on the receivin' end of a bullet myself. I coulda let him live, but I didn't."

"Those people didn't trust you," she whispered. "The people I killed trusted me to keep them safe, to look after them."

Merle shook his head. "It don't matter. A life is a life, and the people back at that camp want ya there. If Tyreese wanted ya dead, ya'd be dead."

"So, what?" She asked. "I just gotta keep carryin' on?"

"If ya don't, there ain't no point to any of this. If ya haven't noticed, it's the end of the world. Either you're gonna do what ya gotta do to survive, or ya just give in."

"I don't wanna die," she said and looked toward the woods.

"Neither do I," he said back and walked closer to her.

Without a second thought, he reached over and took her hand in his. Merle didn't know what he was expecting. Maybe for her to yank her hand away and leave him standing there, but she didn't. She squeezed his hand tight and looked up at him.

"I missed you," she said quietly.

He took a shaky breath and brought his other hand up to her face only to have her dodge out of the way. Merle closed his eyes and dropped his knife hand back to his side. "I got a fuckin' knife for hand," he muttered.

Her hands were on his cheeks then, and he barely had time to react before her lips settled over his, pressing softly, making him tremble just a little. When she moved away, he opened his eyes and saw her small smile.

There was a bubble lodged in the middle of his chest and words that wanted to escape his lips, but all he could do was stare.

* * *

When they made it back to the church, it was a pure chaos.

Tyreese was dragging out someone's body and Judith was crying. Merle met his eyes as he passed, and there was nothing but horror in them. Inside, there was blood over portions of the wooden floor and altar. Rick stood with his machete at his side, blood splattered across his face.

Daryl was off to the side, pulling an arrow from someone's skull, and the others were huddled in what used to be the preacher's office.

"What the fuck happened here?" Merle asked, looking over every one of their people. He barely caught the flash of blonde hair pacing, as Beth tried to get Judith to quiet her screams.

"We warned 'em," Rick said. "It's their own fault for followin' us out this way."

Merle got closer to him, and was finally able to make out what used to be a person. "That the kid from Terminus?"

"Was," Rick answered.

"Ya've done lost your fuckin' mind," Merle said and shook his head.

"They were gonna kill us and eat us. We did what we had to do."

Merle looked over at Daryl who was leaning against the wall, staring at the floor. "We gotta clean this shit up. Walkers'll come."

Finally, Judith quieted down, but Beth didn't leave the office. Daryl laid down his bow and walked to where he knew she was, and Merle started helping Tyreese toss out bodies with Abraham.

Eugene was trembling in a corner and Michonne was out scouring the woods with Carol to make sure there was no more wandering around.

"What happened?" Merle asked again once they were outside.

Abraham looked to Tyreese who shrugged. "Daryl heard 'em movin' around outside. He snuck out the back and heard 'em talkin'. They were thinkin' about followin' you and Carol, but Gareth wanted Rick, so they planned on comin' in the front and killing us. If it wasn't for your brother, we'd all be dead."

Merle shook his head.

"He came back in and got Beth and the kids into the office with me, Tara, and Eugene. Then they all snuck out the back door to come around on 'em."

"Sonofbitch," he muttered.

"It wasn't good for either end, but Gareth made it worse by callin' out for the kids and Beth. He was goadin' and pushin', thinkin' he had the upper hand, threatenin' to burn the church down, except we were the only ones inside. Rick, Daryl and the others came up behind him, and the rest just…" he trailed off and stared into the darkness.

Tyreese looked like he was about to cry, and Merle put a hand on his shoulder and straightened him up as Abraham walked away. "Ya gotta put that conscience away. Ain't a damn thing that coulda changed this. There are bad people that ya gotta kill, and sometimes, there are good people that end up dyin' a long the way. But ya either fight or ya die. They'd've put ya down quicker than ya could blink."

"I don't gotta change," he said and shook his head. "I can still be me."

"As long as ya know that when the time comes, ya gotta put that fuckin' hammer to use and protect your people."

He nodded, but Merle wasn't convinced that Tyreese would know what to do when that time came, and that scared him a lot more than he thought it would.


	17. Chapter 17

Ch. 17

Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing!

This one has a little bit of everything.

Sending out hugs to everyone as we get ready for tonight!

* * *

"How'd ya know?"

"Know what?" Daryl grunted out as he strung up the doe he had just shot.

Beth was back at their new camp, and Merle had come with him instead. He said he needed to talk, but that was the first thing he had said in hours.

"What it was ya felt for Beth."

Daryl looked up at him and shrugged. "Don't know what I feel for her."

Merle stared him down. "That's a damn lie. After everythin' y'all been through, ya ain't got a name for it?"

He shook his head. "I'm with her 'til the end. Why?"

"Figured ya could help me see if what I feel was real or not," he muttered.

"Good lord. What are ya talkin' about?"

"How many times has she said she loved ya?" Daryl paused and looked to the ground before he went to work cleaning the deer. "Ya can't just ignore me," Merle said and walked up beside him.

He didn't speak as Merle huffed and puffed beside him. He wasn't going to talk about his feelings with anyone.

Beth knew. She had to know.

Finally he said, "It feel like it takes up more space than ya've got to give it?"

Merle met his eyes and nodded.

"That's how ya know, I guess."

* * *

The barn had become their unofficial home for a few days after the church and until the group could put together enough resources to start the trek to D.C.. She shivered at the thought of what happened inside the church. She had only seen the aftermath, and Daryl said that he took care of one with his bow, but she had seen Gareth and what was left of him. It terrified her.

Beth wanted to be hopeful about the future, but at the same time, she didn't want to get her hopes up so high that she got depressed if it turned out to be nothing. In theory, D.C. would be a good place to look for a safe zone, but it could have fallen already or never even been one to begin with.

She rocked Judith and sang quietly as she thought about what other options they had. There was nothing left for them here, so they might as well set out for someplace new.

She had just gotten Judith to sleep with she heard Daryl and Merle come back and the others thanking them _and_ God which meant they had brought dinner. That was another blessing because they hadn't had much to eat since before Terminus.

Daryl walked in the door a few seconds later and nodded down at the baby. Beth closed her eyes and tilted her head back and pretended she was asleep then looked back to him and smiled. Daryl held up his bloody hands.

It was silly, but with no words at all, they told each other that their afternoon activities had provided the outcomes they were hoping for.

The rest of the day, Merle and Carol cooked the meat while everyone but Daryl, Beth, Carl, and Eugene went on a run. She didn't like that they got stuck babysitting him _and_ Judith, but it was what it was. Since he was a priority, he had to stay back and he needed people to protect him.

Merle wanted nothing to do with him, and Carol kept to herself. Daryl's personality didn't really invite conversation, and Carl just looked at him like he was stupid, so Eugene ended up around her, talking, constantly, about one thing or another.

He was harmless, but so damn annoying.

It was getting close to dark and the others should have been coming back soon when he sat down next to her and Judith. She ignored the fact he was sitting on Daryl's blanket, and give him a small smile.

"Ya alright?" She asked and helped Judith stand up.

"Yes, I'm fine," he said in that matter-of-fact voice that drove her insane. "I have a proposition I'd like to run by you."

Beth raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm afraid to ask," she said finally.

"I understand that you and Daryl are in a relationship, but is that relationship open?"

She blinked at him. "No, it's not."

Eugene nodded. "I didn't figure it was, but there's no harm in asking, right?" He awkwardly bumped his shoulder with hers. "You're a beautiful woman."

"Uhhhh." It was as close as she got to forming any word when Daryl walked through the door and spotted them. He tilted his head to the side, eying Eugene as he walked across the barn.

"Ya got my seat," he said gruffly.

Eugene stood up. "Good talk, Beth." Then he walked away like he hadn't just asked her what he did.

Daryl took Judith from her and said, "They're back. Looks like they got a whole lotta shit, too, so I guess we'll be leavin' soon." He looked to where Eugene was standing. "What'd he want?"

Beth shook her head. "Just bein' Eugene."

Daryl grunted. "Won't fuckin' shut up. I don't think he knows how."

"Ya might be right."

* * *

Daryl was laid on his back with Beth laying across his chest later that night. Abraham was on watch near the front of the barn, and Rosita was on the roof, keeping an eye out from up there.

Him and Beth remained against the back wall, out of everyone's line of sight. He liked the small bit of privacy. Everyone else had moved toward the front and had already started packing up.

His and Beth's stuff had never been unpacked in the first place.

Daryl cleared his throat and struggled to get comfortable on the hard floor. He never had a problem before, but since he had become a pillow, he realized he used to move around a lot more.

"Be still," she grumbled against his vest and threw her leg over his hips.

"If I didn't wanna be layin' here, I could move," he muttered, always going to default dick mode when he was told to do anything.

Beth lifted her head to look at him. "Then who would I cuddle?"

He made a noise and shrugged.

"Don't uhh-uhh-uhhh me," she whisper laughed. In an instant, she was wide-awake and leaning over him. "Have I told ya that I think you're handsome today?"

"Ya musta gone blind," he said, barely containing the trace of grin that almost tipped up the corner of his mouth.

"I see very well, Mr. Dixon," she whispered and peaked over her shoulder, and he looked, too. Everything was dark and still then she faced him again. The kiss was short and sweet, but she snuck her hand under their blanket, and he groaned out loud.

"Shhhh," she whispered. "We don't wanna wake up the baby."

He nodded and bent an arm up and under his head to watch her. She unbuckled his belt, and he lifted his hips just enough for her to pull them half way down his thighs.

"I thought ya said we couldn't fool around no more," she said and her hand wrapped around his dick, stroking it to life.

"Said we wasn't fuckin' no more," he muttered and closed his eyes. Her hand felt better than his ever did, and tilted his hips up into her hand.

"Oh, well, that makes complete sense." She snorted a little when he tangled his fingers in her ponytail and started to push her down. "Tryin' to shut me up?"

"That wasn't the main goal, but if it's a perk…" Daryl trailed off as she moved the blanket off his hips. Beth moved to settle between his legs, and he sighed when she finally encircled his head with her lips.

He knew this sight, had witnessed it and felt it many times, but that first touch still caused little jolts of electricity to shoot up his spine. She wanted him enough to do this and let him tug on her hair and thrust into her mouth.

She did the same thing when he got between her thighs, but for someone like her to want to do that with someone like him just blew him away. She would say that it didn't matter anymore. They were the same, and they were each other's, but there was a part of him that would never forget the man he had been before the turn, and that part of him would always think he wasn't good enough for her.

"Damn, Beth," he mumbled and tightened his grip on her hair as she took him all the way inside then flattened her tongue along the underside of him as she sucked back up. Soon, she had him panting as quietly as he could and his legs were trembling. She hummed against him when he pistoned his hips and started guiding her movements over him, and he lost it. A strangled groan tore from his throat as he held her still and arched up off the floor.

When he had come back down, and let her go, she helped him pull up his jeans again before grabbing the blanket. Daryl grinned and put a hand on her cheek before he kissed her, drawing her back against his chest.

She was curling around him, and Daryl caught a small movement to their left. He shifted his eyes, but didn't turn his head and caught Eugene standing behind one of the walls that led to the main room. His eyes widened when they met his, and he scurried away.

He was just about to chase after him when Beth sighed and shifted her face against his chest. "I love ya," she whispered. "Goodnight."

Daryl cleared his throat. "Yeah, arrow, night."

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow wouldn't be a good day for that son of bitch at all.

* * *

Something hard hit Merle's shoulder and he rolled over and got ready to fight. Daryl stood above him, looking around like he had done something wrong.

"Need your help," he whispered. "Prolly gonna get our asses chewed for it."

"Okay," Merle said stood up and looked to where Carol was laying on the pallet next to his. They weren't all coupled up, but it was better than nothing considering the distance she had started to put between them since that small peck. "What're we doin'?"

Daryl nodded his head to the other side of the room, so they walked that way. "When Eugene goes out to piss, we're gonna grab him and hang his ass from a tree."

"Ya wanna kill the only chance we have at restorin' the order of things?" Merle asked. Daryl definitely didn't look like he had lost his mind, but that was some of the craziest shit he had heard in a while.

"Nah, by his legs or somethin'. I caught him watchin' me and Beth last night."

Merle nodded a little. "Ya know, now that ya mention it, I remember hearin' that Mexican girl sayin' that he does that from time to time."

"I don't give a shit. He ain't gonna be watchin' us no more."

"Hey, ya ain't gotta convince me. I was on your side when I thought ya meant killin' him."

"Good Lord," Daryl muttered and turned for the door.

Merle laughed quietly and they went outside to wait for Eugene.

* * *

She woke up to screaming, but not the screams that came from walkers tearing into someone. It was the type of scream she hadn't heard in a long time. High pitched and scared, like from riding a roller coaster.

Everyone jumped up at once and ran outside to find the noise and stop it before it brought down walkers on them. They all stared in confusion as they found Eugene strung up by both ankles from a low tree branch, a gag that had been in his mouth hanging in front of his eyes.

"What the hell happened," Rick asked him, looking over the rope and to where it was knotted at the base of the tree.

"I will not do it again," he hollered. "I swear it. I will not watch again."

"Help me get him down from there," Abraham said and strode forward right as Daryl came out from the trees a few yards away. He had some squirrels on his belt, so there was no telling how long Eugene had been hanging there.

Eugene wasn't by himself, though. Merle leaned around the tree and smirked as Daryl pulled out his knife and cut the rope. Everyone watched as Eugene landed heavily on his shoulders and neck.

"Daryl, I am sorry," Eugene said once more as he passed by him.

"Ummmhmm." Daryl nodded in his direction.

Beth chased after him, ignoring everyone as they followed them with their eyes. Daryl barely got around the barn before he started laughing quietly then it got louder the further he got away from the group. When she realized how tickled he had gotten, she started laughing, too. She would have never guessed his laugh would be contagious, but it really was, so was the smile that stretched across his face.

He looked really happy in that moment, and she wished she had a camera to capture it and keep it with her forever.

"What'd he do?" She asked as she tried to stop grinning at him. She knew though, it was embarrassing, but no one could have misinterpreted what Eugene had said, and Daryl's behavior.

"Somethin' he ain't never gonna do again."

Beth couldn't stop herself any more, she crossed the small space between them and wrapped him in a hugged. "You look so cute right now. It's killin' me."

Daryl turned his face into her neck and took a deep breath. "I love ya." He whispered, "I know I don't say it, but ya know it, right? A long time ago, ya said ya knew."

Beth thought back to the cabin he had taken her to and the date he had managed to set up. "Yeah," she said quietly and nodded. She leaned back and put a hand on his cheek. "I know. It's really great to hear it, though."

He shrugged and kissed her bottom lip, drawing it into his mouth slightly then backed away.

Beth smiled and nodded. It was okay that he was quiet about it and that he wouldn't be like Glenn or Abraham in their displays of affection and lust. He was Daryl Dixon, and he was all hers.

And if need be, he would string up a man in a tree just to make a point.

* * *

Merle walked in the back of the group with Carol. They had plenty of supplies, but one of the cars had died right after they crossed the state line, and Carol volunteered to find a new one, so he went with her.

No one questioned it, and he shot a look to Daryl that told him that he should stay back on this one.

Since she had kissed him, she seemed to be pretending like it didn't happen at all. If Merle tried to touch her or sleep close to her, she would inch away slowly.

He wasn't going to be pining over her, so he had decided that he would get her alone and ask her straight up. If she said she didn't want him, he would back off. If she hesitated for a single second, he was going to kiss the hell out of her and crack that mask.

Merle just had to work up the courage to speak, but that didn't look to be happening any time soon. Every time he would start to open his mouth, he would clamp it shut again and keep walking.

They had been on the road nearly an hour before they spotted a two cars on the side of the road. One of them had to work; otherwise they would have to go back since it was starting to get dark.

Carol started opening the doors of the first car while he went on to the second. It had a good bit of gas, but lots of bloodstains in the back. There weren't any keys, but he could hotwire the damn thing easy enough.

"This one's got gas," Carol said.

"This one, too." He stood up straight and leaned his arm against the roof. "Someone got eaten in the backseat. That why ya think they stopped? They run or somethin'?"

Carol shrugged. "Seems like a set up to me, but no one's come out yet."

"Somethin' bad don't have to pop up around every corner," he said and shook his head. "I mean, things are shitty, but ya gotta stop actin' like good stuff don't happen."

Carol smirked. "Someone's been hangin' around their sister-in-law too much."

Merle straightened up a little. "Don't go talkin' bad about Beth."

She ignored him and said, "We'll take both cars back."

As she went to sit down in the driver's seat, Merle finally started talking, "Ya wanna be with me or was that just a big fuckin' mistake?"

Carol stared at him with wide eyes. "Excuse me?"

"The other day. I just—I wanna know if this is somethin' or not."

The silence lingered, and his chest felt like it was close to collapsing. This was the woman he had searched for, thought about, cared for more than anyone else ever, and she was looking at him like she was sorry.

"Merle," she whispered and shook her head. "I don't think I—"

"S'fine," he cut her off. "No skin off my back."

He looked away from her and got in the car, slamming the door against whatever she was trying to say to him. After a few seconds, she got into her car, too.

Merle followed her back to the others and spent the whole ride telling himself that it didn't matter anyway. She thought she was broken, and who was he to try and convince her otherwise? His opinion might have swayed her before the sickness in the prison, maybe even before what happened with Lizzie and Mika, but it didn't count for shit anymore to her.

She had made up her mind, and the only reason she was still around was because she felt some need for penance.

Daryl might not have known it, but he had been right to not give that feeling a name. There were both Dixons, and it didn't matter that the world was over or that they were batting for the good side.

Dixons never got to have anything. Or if they got a taste, they never got to keep it.


	18. Chapter 18

Ch. 18

Thank you all for reading!

* * *

They continued moving toward D.C., but Daryl felt the further away they got from home, the worse off everyone started becoming.

Merle hadn't spoken to him in days. Carol stayed on the outside of the group, even when they were sleeping. Rick had a determined set to his shoulders and blankness in his eyes that made Daryl nervous.

He knew that since Joe's group, Rick had become detached, but he almost looked hopeless now.

It probably had something to do with being on the road for a few weeks, and running low on supplies and water. There were walkers always moving through the woods and in their paths. On more than one occasion, they had to run in the middle of the night, Judith's crying leading the walkers to them in the darkness.

If something didn't give soon, Daryl knew something bad was going to happen, especially with the way Abraham had been bitching about getting Eugene to D.C. and that they were moving too slow.

Eugene had been acting squirrelly, too. He was always too tired to move further and wanted to rest and find shelter to last them a few weeks. He had been convinced that they should have stayed in the barn back in Georgia, and once they overruled him, he seemed to sink into a depression.

Beth's fingers linked with his as they continued on down the road. The cars had died days ago, and they were stuck in South Carolina.

"It could be worse," Beth whispered as if she read his thoughts. "We could all be separated still or barbeque by now."

He tried to glare at her, but he couldn't. She was right. Shit could be way worse.

She opened her mouth to say something then gagged suddenly, covering her mouth against the wind.

It hit him unexpectedly, too.

"What the fuck is that?" Merle asked loudly as everyone finally smelled the rotting air.

They all topped the hill, and below them were hundreds of walkers. They were all pinned in what looked to be a safe zone that had gotten overrun from the inside.

"Good lord," Maggie said and turned away.

"There's no way we can go through that," Rick said and shook his head.

"No, we'll have to circle back," Glenn said with a groan.

"We have to keep moving forward." Abraham turned to the group. "We move slowly and carefully, and we can make it. They're all trapped behind the fences."

"For now," Rick said. "But that can all change real damn quick if they all rush the fences. A herd that size could take 'em down in a hurry."

"The only option is forward."

"Obviously not," Tara said rolled her eyes.

Abraham turned on her in an instant, and Daryl rushed forward the same time as Glenn did. Glenn yelled, "That's enough! You're done!" As Abraham closed in on her, almost bumping his chest with hers as he towered over her.

"We have to keep movin'! That's the only way we survive!"

"Not that way." Rick hollered and got in between them and Abraham. "You don't run this!"

"Eugene is the priority. We need to move!"

"We'd lose Eugene and everyone else if we go that way," Daryl said and stepped up beside Rick. "How many lives y'all already lost 'cause ya don't listen to reason?"

"Ya think ya know what I've been through, ya redneck piece of shit? I know your kind. Both of y'all," he said and waved at Merle. "Take what ya want, feel powerful now 'cause people look to ya for survival. That what that girl do?"

Daryl snapped and lunged for Abraham, tackling him to the ground by the waist. He heard Beth hollering for him to stop and he felt Merle or Rick trying to pull him back, but he got into two good shots to the other man's face before Abraham rolled them over and started wailing on him. Daryl managed to turn away from on oncoming punch then head-butt Abraham as hard as he could, making the bigger man roll to the side clutching his nose.

In an instant, Daryl was on him again, and they rolled around, trading punches for just a few seconds longer before Eugene's shrill confession filled the air. "I am not a scientist! Stop! I am not a scientist!"

Any other time it might have been funny how him and Abraham froze in their middle of their fight and turned to look at the man standing a few feet away. He was cowering in on himself, stupid haircut, and jean shorts. Smart as hell, Daryl knew that much just from the past few weeks, but weak.

"What'd ya say?" Abraham asked, pushing Daryl away from him.

"I am not a scientist. I did not work in any lab with this type of virus or know how it started or how to reverse it," Eugene admitted then looked Abraham squarely in the eyes. "I am smarter than you, though. I'm the smartest person here. D.C. seemed like the best option to try and find a secure area to rebuild, and I needed people to get me there."

"You motherfucker," Abraham growled out and crossed the road to Eugene. Everyone was still in shock at his confession so no one even sprung into action until the second time Abraham smashed his forearm against Eugene's face, knocking him out cold.

He fell to the ground at Abraham's feet, but before he could pick him back up, Rosita stepped in between them, a hand on the gun at her hip.

No words passed between them, but Daryl could see Rosita's eyes as she clearly sent the message to Abraham that it was over, and he needed to settle his ass down fast. All at once the fight drained out of him, and he walked back to the way they had came a few yards before he hit his knees and dropped his head.

* * *

"He dead?" Merle asked as he toed Eugene with his boot.

"No," Tara said quietly and met his eyes. "He got knocked the fuck out, though."

He shrugged. "Had it comin'. We been lookin' after his ass like he's a baby for the last few weeks when he shoulda been carryin' his own weight. Hell, you're a little thing, but I don't see you hidin' behind us when trouble comes."

"I owe all of you," she muttered.

Merle snorted. "Glenn told ya anythin' about me?"

Tara looked him over and shook her head. "I know he doesn't like you."

"'Cause a long time ago, I was workin' with the Governor myself. Got him and his missus into a good bit of trouble, too. If they can tolerate my ass, ya sure as shit don't owe them a damn thing no more. The bill's paid."

She stared at him in shock. "Why weren't you with them the whole time? I mean, you're Daryl's brother."

He crouched down beside her as she wiped off Eugene's forehead. The others had scattered a long the road in little clusters. For now they were safe, the walker smell masked them, and they couldn't go anywhere without Eugene awake.

Beth was taking care of Daryl as much as he hated it, and Abraham still stared off into space like a damn walker.

"Officer Friendly over there," he said and pointed to Rick, "handcuffed my ass to roof in Atlanta the first time we met. The key got dropped down a drain and the rotters came. Only reason I'm here is 'cause the door was chained, and I had to cut off my own hand with a saw."

"You cut off your own hand?" She asked in a horrified whisper.

"Sure did. Then cauterized it myself, stole those bastard's van and took off."

"What about your brother?"

Merle shrugged. "I's pissed for awhile. By the time I started lookin' for him again, the trail had gone cold. Saw Glenn out on a run, snatched up him and Maggie and took 'em to Woodbury. It was the wrong choice. I done a lotta shit I regret. That's up near the top."

"Wow." Tara shook her head. "Why're you tellin' me this?"

"Don't know," he said and looked off to where Carol sat near the tree line, ignoring him and everyone else. "Just to pass the time. I don't know ya all that well, either. Like to know who I'm livin' around."

"I'm still a little scared of you," she admitted.

"No reason to be. I'm turnin' over a new leaf when it comes to how I do shit in this life now."

"And what are those changes?"

"I'm gonna try and be better."

"Why?"

Merle looked at his brother and Beth, and at the other couples around the group. The families that had come together to form this rag-tag team of survivors that had somehow turned into a huge family.

"Sure as hell won't hurt nothin', and I think that when I die, I want my conscience clear."

"You plannin' on dyin' sometime soon?" Glenn asked from behind him suddenly.

"Not just yet, but if I need to get put down, do the honors, okay, Chinaman. Don't let that fall on his shoulders."

Glenn met his eyes and for once, there wasn't hate there, but a small amount of understanding. "Yeah. It'd be my pleasure."

Merle smirked and stood up. "We should really move his ass to the shade 'fore he fries out on this blacktop."

* * *

"What happened?" Beth asked quietly as Carol stood over the fire.

"What do you mean?" She asked back, not bothering to look up.

Beth scoffed. "Ya know what I mean."

Carol shrugged. "I don't think it really matters."

Beth sighed heavily and shot a quick look around before she crouched down beside Carol and whispered harshly, "I don't care what happened to ya out there, and I'm grateful for what ya did for us, but you ain't the only person to get broken and beaten down. The woman I know is stronger than this. The woman I know would fight like hell instead becomin' invisible."

"You have no idea the things I've done. You were in relative safety while I was out in the woods with three little girls, and the man whose girlfriend I killed. The woman you knew? She got burned away when Rick kicked her out."

"You ain't ashes," Beth said quietly.

Carol groaned a little. "Save this talk for someone who doesn't know the truth about all this, Beth. Someone still so naïve as to believe that this world is worth savin' or that we'll figure it all back out."

Beth flinched back, and in a last ditch effort as Carol started to stand and walk away, she said, "Ya hurt him really bad. He looked for ya. There wasn't a day that went by that he didn't think about ya, and if ya were okay."

"I'm no one's worry, Beth. Not even Merle's."

That made her blood boil in a way that it hadn't since that time drinking moonshine with Daryl and Merle in the shack. Beth couldn't stop herself as she popped up on her feet and hollered, "Must be pretty damn tirin' to climb up on that cross everyday, Carol. Ya ever need in help, why don't ya just use one of us as your step stool since ya think your pain is the only one that matters!"

Carol froze and turned slowly as everyone else stared at them. She could see Daryl move out of the corner of her eye, but kept going.

"This group is broken!" She yelled as angry tears filled her eyes. "We're wanderin' around like chickens with our heads cut off, everybody's feelin' so down and woe is me. Ya know what? All y'all can hold onto that pain, that's fine. I got a world of hurt right here." She tapped her chest. "I ain't dead yet, though. I still got a few miles to go, and either we can all get back on board together or we can shuffle down there to that safe zone and just call it a day." She paused for a second and wiped her eyes. "Well, y'all can. I ain't ready yet. My daddy knew that we could be better, do better. And I'm gonna find it."

Daryl wrapped his hand around hers and started pulling her to their little pack by a tree. "Ya alright?"

"I'm so damn tired, and if everyone's gonna give up then so be it. We didn't survive this long just to give up now."

He grunted and nodded. "We'll go back if ya want."

Beth shook her head. "No, we're goin' forward. To D.C. or whatever the hell is out that way."

Once he had wrapped his arms around her shoulders, she leaned against him and let the quiet tears spill out of her eyes and onto his shirt.

A few minutes later, Abraham cleared his throat and said, "Well, in light of that rousin' speech, I guess we should double back. Get on route sixteen and try that way."

"I agree," Rick said in a gruff tone. "They can't smell us from here, so we should camp up on the hill for the night, and tomorrow, we'll go."

There was a murmur of agreement among the rest of the group, and Beth sat against the tree trunk. "Sorry for causin' such a scene," she whispered to Daryl.

"Ya didn't say anythin' that didn't need to be said."

"I was rude."

"You were right." Beth looked up at him. "We're all feelin' sorry for ourselves, and a little of that's okay, but too much of it'll get us killed."

She nodded. "I prolly shoulda been nicer to Carol. I don't know what happened out there."

"Somethin' happened to all of us."

They watched as Merle took off into the woods after Carol. "Ya think I made him mad?"

"Nah," Daryl said with a shrug. "I think he's been lookin' for an openin' for a while. Ya just gave him one."

Beth looked across the road to where they had Eugene laid out. "What'll we do with _him_?"

"Let him tag along I guess. He's an asset. He's just a coward."

Beth sighed. "That's the funny thing about this new world, though. Gives cowards plenty of moments to redeem themselves."

Daryl laughed. "Let's not be placin' bets on Eugene just yet."

She smirked and looked down at their hands, still twined together. "I love ya. Never leave me."

He looked at her then, and she saw the seriousness in his eyes. "Never."

* * *

"Ya just out for a walk or ya runnin' away?" He asked once he was within talking distance. She was walking toward the safe zone, and he didn't want to alert the walkers to their presence.

When they got to the tree line, she stopped and shook her head. "Why am I here, Merle?"

"'Cause you're too damn stubborn to die?"

"No, really," she said and turned around, "why am I still alive?"

"You're strong."

She shook her head. "Ed should've killed me a few times. Then there was the farm, and I shoulda gotten bit then, too, but Andrea saved me. Then T-Dog saved me at the prison. Then Rick kicked me out after I told him what I had done. After that, it all went downhill."

"Ya saved us. All of us. Ya repaid those debts from the others that saved ya. If ya weren't there, we'd be eaten already."

"I don't wanna go to hell," she whispered.

Merle met her eyes finally and froze. She looked lost and beaten.

"Ya ain't goin' to hell."

"There's no place in heaven for me."

"When ya die, you'll be seein' your daughter again. This world ain't like it was before, and if there's a God, he wouldn't keep y'all separated like that."

"Why're ya here?" She asked as she sat down beside a tree.

"Why're pretendin' like we ain't got somethin' good?"

She looked over at him as he sat down at the base of the opposite tree. "Do you want the honest to God truth?"

"Yeah," he said with a nod.

Carol swallowed hard. "I'm so damn tired of losin' people. I would rather be cold and distant than open myself up and lose again. Just look at your brother, Merle. He could handle this world before Beth, but now? When she goes, and she will 'cause she's not made to be here either, he's gonna follow right behind her. He won't survive the loss."

"Ya think I can survive in this world?"

"It's all ya've ever done."

"Ya think you'll survive?"

"I think it's my curse," she answered quietly.

"Then I don't see what you're so scared of. Ya ain't gonna lose shit if ya take a chance on me."

Carol looked down at the herd inside the safe zone. "What if you're wrong?"

"Then I'll be happy for the time we had. I ain't never had a good woman before."

They sat in silence for a long time, and he figured he must have said too much, but over the last few weeks he realized that he didn't care if she knew how he felt. He would rather her know and take that as she would, than have him pretend it never mattered at all. He could die tomorrow, and he didn't want any regrets.

Merle was still staring at the herd stumbling around below when he heard the leaves crunch under her as she stood up. Instead of turning away from him, she walked to sit beside him, and once she was leaning against the same tree as him, she took his hand.

"This is gonna end badly."

"Maybe. Maybe not," he said and squeezed softly.

That ever-present ache in his chest lessened to a dull pain, and he hoped to God that he was right, and it lasted for a little while.


	19. Chapter 19

Ch. 19

Thank you all for reading and reviewing!

* * *

They stayed in the woods near the walker infested safe zone for the night while Eugene recovered. Everyone needed a cool down, though.

It was the middle of the night, and Daryl had been on watch since everyone laid down. Beth had insisted that she was going to sleep beside him instead of near the center of camp, and he didn't mind. He liked her close by.

He sat with his back to a tree while Beth slept in a sleeping bag next to him. Her breathing almost lulled him into a daze, so he stood up and started to move around. He could last a couple more hours before he had to wake up Glenn.

It was crazy to him that just a few months ago they had been sleeping on the roof of the tackle shop and getting solid rest. Even the funeral home had been a place to recharge.

Now, they were back on the road, sleeping on the ground, and running all the time. With Eugene's confession, they didn't even have a plan anymore.

Camp was quiet, and he could hear the distant growls from the walkers below. One day those fences would give, and if anyone was around they had better move fast.

"I can take over," Abraham's gruff voice came from behind him.

Daryl turned and looked over his shoulder. "Glenn's got it next."

"I know, but ya look worn out, so I can keep an eye on things until it's his turn."

"Why?" Daryl asked. His face might have been bruised, but he was pretty sure that he broke Abraham's nose with that head butt. He smirked at the ground at that thought.

"Saw ya noddin' off back there."

"So now you're peepin' on folks like Eugene?"

"Just fuckin' forget it," Abraham said and started to walk off.

Daryl sighed and started to follow him. "Take watch," he said. "I'm gonna lay down. Wake up Glenn in a little while, and he'll take it until dawn."

With a nod from Abraham, their disagreement was settled.

* * *

He barely got any sleep at all before Beth was pushing him awake.

"We gotta go," she whispered. "Rick said we gotta start doublin' back now, and that we're lookin' for a place to hunker down for winter."

"Great," he muttered and rolled onto his back. "Fuckin' great."

"I'm sorry ya didn't get much rest. I hog the covers," she said with a grin, trying to get him to smile back.

He couldn't, though.

Winter on the run wasn't a good idea. The walkers might have slowed down, but food was scarce, and lighting a fire was damn near asking for trouble. There were more people to feed and keep warm this time, too.

"We gotta find a safe place," he said and closed his eyes again. "We won't make it movin' around like we did before we found the prison."

"I know," she said quietly. "Too many of us now, and Judith cries too much."

"Yeah."

"We could always scout ahead," she offered.

Daryl sat up. "Nah, we don't need to separate either. Let's just hope we find somethin'."

Beth leaned forward and kissed him softly. "Ya know, we didn't have sex and somethin' terrible still happened. I think we're in the clear."

He snorted. "Ya blew me." He thought she would laugh, and when she didn't he peaked up at her from under his hair. Her eyes were dark and intense, and as she drug her tongue over her bottom lip, he groaned softly. "I left ya hangin'."

She just continued to stare, and he looked around the camp. Everyone was starting to move around, packing up their stuff, and readying to walk back the way they had come.

"C'mon," he whispered and stood up, taking her hand in his. He grabbed his bow with the other and headed out into the woods and away from the safe zone.

They'd all think they had gone hunting and wait for them to get back. It wouldn't take long. Not with the way she was looking at him.

After they walked for a few minutes, he sat his bow against the base of a tree and pushed her against it. She blushed a little and that flare of innocence mixed with the lust in her eyes broke him a little.

He pushed a hand into her hair as he brought his lips to meet hers, and she pressed her hips forward to meet his.

Her hands traced his shoulders and up his neck and into his hair, pulling him so hard against her that their teeth clinked together.

"Sorry," she mumbled but pulled him back too fast for him to say anything.

He kissed his way down her neck, and stared sucking lightly on the juncture of her shoulder and neck. The noises she made were soft needy as he worked open the button of her jeans and slid his hand inside. She was so fucking wet against his fingers and he dropped his forehead to her chest for a moment as she gasped from his touch.

It was an awkward angle and her jeans were so tight that he could barely move his hand or thrust his fingers into her like he wanted.

The light teasing touches were enough, though, and soon she was trembling against him, begging him for a just a little more.

He pushed the material a little past her hips and caged her body between his and tree.

No one would see anything if they wandered by.

Finally, he pushed two fingers inside and curled them up just the way she liked, and she threw her head back against the tree. Daryl went back to kissing and nipping at her neck and pushed a hand under her shirt and into her bra.

When he lightly bit down on her shoulder and tugged on her nipple, she started pulsing around his fingers.

"So, so close," she breathed.

On the next upstroke, he curled his fingers again and pushed her shirt up completely, replacing his hand with his mouth on her nipple. He barely sucked her into his mouth before she was clamping down on his fingers and groaning loudly against the top of his head.

He slowed down his hand and gently pulled out as he straightened her top. Daryl wiped his fingers against his bottom his shirt before tugging her jeans back into place.

The whole time, she leaned against the tree, grinning with her eyes closed.

"Ya feelin' better?" He asked even as he his dick was pressing hard against his zipper.

"So much. God, I missed your fingers and your mouth," she said then put a hand over her lips.

He stood there, smirking, feeling heat light up his cheeks a little. It made him proud that he could make her fall apart like that, and even want him that way to begin with.

"I'm at your service," he joked, but they both knew he really was.

"I love you." Beth stood on her toes and kissed him softly. The earlier heat kisses had transformed to lazy, satisfied ones.

"We need to get back, arrow."

Beth nodded and linked their fingers together as he led them back to camp.

Just like he thought, no one really noticed their absence. Rick asked if they'd caught anything, but Daryl just shook his head, and that was the end of it.

They walked through the morning, everyone taking turns carrying Judith, who got very bored, very fast.

It was a tedious uphill battle most of the way, and by the time they reached the junction to route sixteen, they were all ready to fall down and sleep for days.

"We gotta find a place," Glenn said as he leaned against a tree.

"It's not like we aren't lookin'," Tara said. "Not really a whole lotta fortresses built in South Carolina."

"Military bases?" Abraham offered.

"I betcha there's about a hundred walkers for every person in our group just pressed against the walls. Not to mention what's inside one of those things. It's a fuckin' small town for Christ's sake," Merle said and shook his head. "Ya sure you're really military?"

Abraham puffed out his chest, clearly offended. "Served over twenty years."

"Yeah, well I served three and eighteen months were spent in lock up, and I know more than you apparently."

"You were Army?"

"Yes, sir. Answered Uncle Sam's call, but didn't do so well when it came to loud mouth, prick S.O.s." He smirked. "Hoo-ah!"

Abraham looked less than impressed as he turned away from Merle and back to Rick.

Daryl sighed. "Let's look for a gated community. Might be some walkers but we could reinforce the fences until we're ready to move in the spring."

"We're basically screwed for tonight, though," Rosita said and put her hands on her hips. "Abandoned house?"

They were all looking around and most of their eyes settled on Daryl. "I ain't a fuckin' GPS. Ya can't just ask for a location and follow my ass to it."

"Maybe you and Beth could look ahead?" Michonne asked from his right. "Or if ya don't want her to go, I could go with ya."

Daryl shook his head. "I'd rather us stick together."

"Then y'all can go in the mornin'." Rick looked away, putting his hand on his gun. "Maybe y'all'll get lucky."

"I meant all of us," Daryl said. "Every time we split up, bad shit happens."

"Abraham?" Eugene said quietly. "Can I please see your map?"

No words were exchanged on his part, and he tossed the map to Eugene's feet. After spreading it out, and giving it a close look, he said, "We are near Aiken, South Carolina. We went around Augusta, which was a smart move, but we are nowhere near where we should be. First off, I think we should send a scout team in and around Aiken. It's a small town, but I'm sure there was money there, especially since Augusta is so close. We stay here a few weeks and recover then move to Lexington.

"I do not recommend stopping for more than two weeks at a time, and once we find transport, we should head straight through. I know we're all tired, but the mission is to get to D.C., and it should still be the priority."

"If you don't wanna get planted on your ass again, I highly advice you shut the fuck up, Eugene," Abraham said and grabbed the map.

Two hours of discussion later, they ended up choosing Eugene's plan anyway, and Abraham would barely look at anyone.

It was the worst trip Daryl had ever fucking been on, and he couldn't wait to find a car so he could get as far away from the others as he possibly could.

Quiet.

A decent night's sleep.

A nice door with a lock to separate him from Eugene.

He would take just about anything at that point.

* * *

A couple of days later, they made it to Aiken. Merle figured it was what people up North imagined the South looked like. It had golf courses with big houses lining the fairways, and streets lined with trees and white picket fences surrounding their houses.

Merle looked at Beth when they walked through the fairway of one hole on their way into town. "Wanna drink, party girl?"

Beth blushed and shook her head. "I think I learned my lesson last time."

"What?" Maggie asked, instantly curious, and Beth shot Merle a death stare.

"You're a loud mouth, Merle Dixon," she said and walked a little faster.

"This sounds like a really good story," Maggie said and caught up with her.

"I'm a steel fuckin' trap, princess," Merle muttered. "I only tell the funny shit."

"What's he mean, Daryl?"

Merle thought that Maggie looked like one of those excited little dogs that would piss on the floor if you got them too wound up, and when Daryl shrugged and didn't speak, she deflated a little.

"I'm sorry if I just wanted to hear a funny story when all that's around us is terrible stuff," she muttered. She was playing Beth, though. Merle could see it in her eyes.

Beth wasn't immune to it either, and probably never had been because she sighed heavily before saying, "I got mad one day and went lookin' for a drink. Daryl found us some moonshine, and I ended up burnin' down the shack to get us out while walkers tried to get in through the front."

Maggie's eyes widened. "Ya got away from a herd by burnin' down your shelter while ya were drunk on moonshine?"

Beth laughed and nodded. "Yup. Sure did. I think we all felt like we'd been run over the next day."

"Drunk sex is the best sex," Maggie said with a shrug. "Hope ya made the best of it."

Even Merle turned a deep shade of red at that and looked at Maggie like she was insane. "They weren't by themselves, woman. Good Lord."

"Who knows?" Maggie said and looked over at it. "Maybe ya joined in?"

Merle's jaw dropped, Daryl stopped walking and looked back at Maggie like she had lost her mind, and Beth's face looked like a cherry tomato.

"Ya fuckin' with us?" Daryl asked quietly. He was eyeing hard.

"Merle is mighty protective of Bethy," she mused and walked past them.

"I—Maggie, I'm not—are ya serious?"

She shrugged again. "Stranger things have happened."

"Oh my God," Beth whispered and looked away from everyone.

When Beth started walking really fast, Daryl took off after her, flipping Maggie off as she started laughing so hard that Merle thought she was going to fall to the grass.

"Your faces," she gasped. "Priceless."

"Ya really think that's funny? Outta all the jokes ya got, that's the one ya went with?"

"I wanted to see Daryl get jealous, and I thought it might make him get all protective. Apparently not, though."

"That's 'cause I'm his fuckin' brother, ya idiot."

"I guess my sense of humor needs some more fine tunin'. It's not like I've had lots of reasons to joke around lately."

"Obviously," Merle said and shook his head.

They walked in silence for a second, trying to catch up with Daryl and Beth, before Maggie asked, "You and Carol?"

He shrugged.

"That her call or yours."

"Hers."

"Thought y'all sorted it all out back at that safe zone."

"Who the hell knows. That woman runs hot and cold." They were together. They slept side-by-side, but they didn't put it out there in public, and after that joke, Maggie didn't need to know shit.

Maggie nodded. "Maybe when things settle down, and we actually have safety again."

"Yeah, and maybe the walkers will all drop dead and things will go back to normal."

"They're already dead."

"Die again then. Damn, woman, are ya always this fuckin' naggy?"

She laughed and looked up at the clear, blue sky. "Merle?"

"What?" He asked gruffly.

"I just want ya to know that I accept your apology."

He turned his head to look over at her, and he saw the sincerity in her eyes. It made his throat get tight, and he looked away with a nod. "Thank ya," he muttered and walked a little faster to get away from anything else she might throw his way.

* * *

They found nothing in Aiken or any other place nearby. Finally, after a nearly three weeks of searching, they found it outside Richmond, Virginia.

_Sherwilt Estates_.

A nice gated community with a few walkers staggering around. It wasn't ideal since one of its walls was beaten in, but they could fix that up enough to make it last the winter.

After a pep talk on safety and killing the walkers right at the gate, they broke into groups of two to clear out houses with Carol staying with Judith and Carl in one of the first houses that they checked over.

It became clear pretty quickly to Beth that the house was safe, but that something terrible had happened inside. She found a woman with her head beaten in right inside the door, and there was a walker, strapped in a recliner with a 'W' carved into his forehead, that had an arrow through the chest. Lord knows what he had to witness before that came.

The next house must have been the same because Michonne stepped out and looked around. "Someone killed them in here."

"In ours, too." Daryl said back.

Rick nodded. "Think they're still around?"

Beth shook her head. "Do y'all's have 'W's carved into their foreheads?" she asked, looking around at the surrounding woods.

"Yeah," Michonne said quietly. "All of them that still have a forehead that is."

"The bodies look really old," Beth said as an uneasy feeling raced through her veins. This was right.

From out of nowhere Eugene popped up. "She's right. The rate of decomposition suggests these people have been dead for a least six months."

"They let some of 'em turn," said Daryl. "But it's obvious they were just killin' to kill. Most of the supplies are still in this one house." He looked to Eugene. "Ain't you supposed to be with Tara?"

"She felt it best if I stayed put and went with Maggie and Glenn. I'm not much of a fighter."

"You're gonna have to figure that out," Beth said. "Ya ain't gonna live long without fightin'."

Daryl walked around back and stood in front of the wall. She walked up beside him and noticed what he was staring at. Carved into the side were the words, "Wolves not far."

"Ya think that means actual wolves?" Beth asked.

"I seriously fuckin' doubt it," Daryl answered. "I think we need to get the hell outta here."

Right at that moment, they heard screams for help and took off toward the front.

Sasha was racing toward them in tears. "It's Tyreese! Come help me!"

"Fuck no," Daryl whispered as everyone else took off.

They couldn't lose him. He was one of theirs, and they had already been through so much. As he crossed the threshold to the house, though, he heard the yelling and Merle's voice trying to calm him down.

Daryl closed his eyes for a moment before gathering himself together to walk forward and see what was happening in the room down the hall.


	20. Chapter 20

Ch. 20

Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!

* * *

Beth walked into bloody chaos. There was a child on the bed that been eaten. A 'W' carved into his forehead, too. Another child on the floor, but this one had been a walker. This one was responsible for the incoherent ramblings coming from her friend, a family member, hiding under a desk.

The men reached under and fought off his swings as they got him beside the bed. Beth couldn't make out what he was saying at first.

She watched as Merle stood over Tyreese, trying to hold him down. "Stop it," he commanded. "Ain't no one here but us."

Finally he got loud enough to where Beth could hear, and she gasped at his words and felt tears fill her eyes. "I know who I am!" Tyreese was holding his arm as he pointed at the wall opposite wall. "I know what's happenin' and what's goin' on! I don't gotta change!"

"He's hallucinatin'," Rick said as he crouched down beside Merle. "He been like this the whole time?"

"I came in as Sasha left. She was tryin' to put a tourniquet on it, but he kept pushin' her away."

"Hold his arm out," Rick commanded and grabbed his wrist as Merle grabbed his forearm. "One hit, Michonne. Make it clean."

Sasha stared in complete shock and Bob tried to get her to leave the room, but she pushed him away and stepped in front of Beth. Tyreese cried out as the katana made contact with his arm, and Merle and Rick fell backwards as his arm came away from his body.

Daryl dove from his knees to catch him before he hit the ground then they were hauling him out of the house.

It was that moment that Beth noticed the young man who pressed up against the bedroom wall. He had been so still before, but now he was rocking a little. "I'm sorry," he whispered over and over again.

There would be time for answers after, so she rushed out of the house to the yard where the group had stopped.

"Where the fuck are we supposed to go?" Merle asked and looked around. "We ain't got shit here!"

Bob kneeled and started trying to stem the flow of blood, but it was too much, too quick. Abraham and Rosita ran up the same time as Maggie, Glenn and Tara, all of them gaping at Tyreese, bleeding out on the grass.

He was tough and strong. His heart was probably the kindest she had ever known beside her own father, and now he lay there unconscious as his life slipped away.

"What's goin' on?" Carol asked as she pushed through the wall of people.

She gasped and clapped a hand over of her mouth when she saw Tyreese. Her eyes flooded with tears, and she backed away.

"He's gone," Bob said in disbelief. "There was nothin' I could do."

Sasha hit her knees and was taking short, choppy breathes.

"We gotta…" Daryl trailed off, and Beth looked up to watch him shake his head. "Fuck."

"How do we do it?" Glenn asked as he kneeled beside Merle.

"I'll do it," Carol said quietly.

Beth turned her gaze to Carol, and Merle said, "Not a chance in hell."

"Do it before he turns," Sasha whispered. "Don't let him turn."

Rick knelt by his head and held his hand out to Daryl, who handed over his knife. With a swift motion, he put it through Tyreese's head, right behind his ear.

No one moved for a very long time.

It was the first death that they had experienced in months. Despite Terminus and all the running and hiding, they had all survived, but now, Tyreese was gone and the walker had been a child. They would bury him here in this community and probably never visit his grave again. It would be marked by a rough cross that Daryl would put together that would probably blow over in the first storm.

She felt her chest tighten up as her mind went to the prison, and the people they had buried there. The lives that had been lost, and the family members they put into the ground with reverence. The graves that no one even knew where there any more.

How her father didn't even have a grave.

Her breathing turned shaky, and she closed her eyes.

"He was a good man," Abraham said. "I'll find a good spot and start diggin'."

Glenn stood up. "I'll help."

"Me too," Merle said and popped to his feet.

After several seconds of silence, Rick said, "Let's finish clearin' the houses. We'll bury him once we're done. Someone needs to stand guard over him in case there are any walkers that are wanderin' around that we haven't seen."

"There are no walkers in the houses," the young man seemed to appear out of nowhere. "It was just my brother."

Everyone stepped back, and Beth wondered if she wasn't the only one to notice him at the last second or even not notice him at all in the room.

"Your brother?" Rick asked.

He nodded. "Me and my dad left 'em to go look for my uncle outside Atlanta. The fences were strong, so we weren't worried. We ran into trouble, though. I ended up gettin' taken by some people for few months before I broke out, and I came back here. Everyone was dead, and there were a few rotters, but I just went around and came through a hole in the wall. I haven't left my house in a month."

"How'd ya survive?"

"We had stocked up for the five of us, but now it's just me so there's plenty. My mom was killed in the livin' room, my little brother in his bed, and his twin, my other little brother, got left for dead and turned. I'd been keepin' him locked in the bedroom, but he came in," he pointed at Tyreese. "He went into Zac's room first and his room was connected to Zek's room by the bathroom, and Zek got him. I tried to stop him, but it was too late."

"Who are ya?" Rick asked.

"I'm Noah," he said quietly. "I've heard his voice before." He pointed at Merle's back. "When I was in Grady, I swear to God, I heard him on the radio."

Everyone got real quiet and looked between Daryl and Beth. They hadn't given details of that night, and they weren't going to start now.

"That wasn't that long ago," Daryl said then pulled Beth closer to him. "How'd ya get here so fast?"

"I didn't bust out of there until a few weeks ago. I took one of their cars and a few gas cans. I went county roads, and it wasn't so bad. Took a day and half, but that's because I slept for a few hours."

He looked at Beth. "Seems like we were supposed to meet either way, huh?" He shook his head.

"Ya been takin' drugs?" Daryl asked and gripped his bow strap.

"No," Noah said as threw him a look that was full of attitude.

"So, what? Ya were just gonna hide out in that house for the rest of your life?"

He shook his head. "No, I was gonna get out one day. I got a bad leg, so I have to plan stuff out first. This place isn't safe, though. We can't stay here for long."

"You're a cripple?" Daryl asked.

"No, I'm not," he said and shook his head. "I just got a limp is all."

"We?" Rick asked and cocked his head to the side.

"Yeah," Noah said with a nod. "I can't stay here anymore, and y'all can't either. It's hard to miss all the "W"s and the tags all over the place."

Beth looked over at Daryl who was studying Noah. He looked like he was about to say something when Rick asked, "Ya got any cars?"

"They left those," Noah answered.

"Who?" Daryl asked.

"The ones that came through here and killed everyone."

"I realize that we're livin' in a strange world," Tara said. "But why does it feel like this is some trippy hallucination? We met a strange guy who just happens to be from a place where Beth almost gotten taken, and he recognizes Merle Dixon from his voice alone, from a ten second conversation months ago, and we're just like, 'Absolutely. Seems legit."

"Well, the dead have risen up. Why not believe some kid remembers the way someone sounded? Besides he's right," Rosita pointed out.

"I'm good with rememberin' things," Noah said and looked at Beth. "I am glad that you're safe. You didn't deserve what would've happen to you."

Daryl stepped in between them. "What the fuck are you talkin' about?"

"That hospital. Nothin' good happened there."

Rick looked around the group. "Everyone start clearin' again," he said, and Beth knew it was because Noah was starting to unnerve the rest of the group. "I'm gonna talk to our new friend some more."

Daryl grabbed her arm and hauled her away while Noah watched her go with a small smile on his face.

"Ya don't go near him until we know more about him," Daryl whispered.

Beth swallowed hard. "This is crazy. I could have been there months ago with him."

Daryl stopped and looked down at her. "But ya weren't. It didn't happen that way. Merle was there that night. I's there. And now we're all here."

"Just what if, ya know?" Beth asked and shook her head. "I talked Merle outta bein' stupid and you started watchin' him, so he couldn't go to the meetin' with the Governor. What if he was supposed to die there? Then without Merle, you woulda been killed, and those cops woulda taken me to Atlanta—to that hospital."

"No," he said in a firm voice. "Ain't gonna get ya nowhere thinkin' like that, arrow."

"Anythin's possible."

"It ain't thinkin' like that," he said. "I ain't puttin' that up here." He tapped his temple. "Things happened just like they were supposed to."

Beth sighed and got quiet for a few seconds. "You're probably right. It just caught me off guard."

"Just don't go near him. Seems like he's been out here too long."

"Haven't we all?"

"Ya got a soft heart," Daryl said quietly and moved closer to her, cupping her cheek with his hand. "Please steer clear of him."

There was a look of complete concern in his eyes, and for a second, Beth wondered if he was reliving that night just like she had been.

"I won't," she promised as he took her hand again.

She noticed that his grip never loosened from hers the entire time they finished walking the wall.

* * *

They buried Tyreese in the backyard of the home he had been bitten in. Noah had kept it up nicely considering the twenty or so walkers that had been wandering the community when they had arrived.

Merle wasn't entirely sure that Noah was sane or that he even cared whether he lived or died at the moment. After watching him during Ty's funeral, Merle figured he was just really lost.

He caught him staring in his direction a few times and wondered what he was thinking. He didn't seem like he would go on a killing spree, but it was always best to hold people at arm's length for a bit.

Sasha was ready to leave as soon as they placed the cross, but it was late and getting dark, so they were forced to stay. They all gathered in Noah's house, eating some of his stockpile and talked about loading three cars with supplies before trying to get to D.C.

Noah didn't speak much, but he whispered at his hands a lot. At first Merle thought he was praying, but he got closer and heard him saying, "I tried to tell them. I tried to tell them."

"Tried to tell us what?" Merle asked quietly, not wanting to spook him.

Noah's eyes snapped up to meet his. "When I was in the hospital, they thought I was weak. I tried to tell them I wasn't."

Merle watched him carefully. "They take ya from your daddy?"

"Yeah, they said they could only save one of us, but I figured out that they only took the ones they could keep in check. I'm not weak. They didn't know me, and they wouldn't have known her either."

His skin crawled as he thought about the two men that wanted to take her and the female voice on the C.B. "Who was the leader?"

Noah started rocking a little. "Dawn."

Merle hummed and scratched his jaw. "Ya close to her?"

"I was her ward."

He nodded. "Well, you're here now, and trust me, I don't think you're weak. Anyone that's made it this long has pulled some shit to make it."

Noah just stared at him with wide eyes. "I've never—"

"Don't matter to me," Merle said and waved him off. Noah snapped his mouth shut. "Ya wanna go along for the ride, that's fine. I better not catch ya makin' eyes at that girl, though. I'll drop your ass like a bad habit." He laughed quietly. "That'd be a first for me."

Noah nodded.

After a few seconds, Merle asked, "Ya really recognized my voice when I's comin' in the house?"

He nodded again.

"You're smart. Ya could go far, especially pretendin' you're crazy when we both know ya ain't. Now," he paused and Noah looked back up at him. "Did ya let that walker loose on Tyreese?"

He shook his head quickly. "Never. I really didn't want him to die. I was tryin' to stop him from goin' in there, but I scared him when I popped up. It distracted him just enough for Zek to grab him. I don't want anyone to die."

Merle clapped a hand on his shoulder lightly. "Ain't a damn thang we can do about it now."

As he walked away from Noah, he sighed heavily. Tyreese was a huge loss. Noah wasn't much of a gain. They were hundreds of miles from the_ idea_ of a safe zone.

Things weren't looking good at all.

* * *

They stayed at that house for two days as they packed up and rested. Daryl hunted with Beth by his side while the others planned the route that would lead them to D.C..

They had enough gas to get them there if they stuck to the main roads, but Daryl figured with all the detours they would have to take from the interstates, it might not really last until then.

There was a part of him that desperately wanted a safe zone for all his family, but he was a little scared of the small part that wished it was still just him, Beth, and Merle again. Things had been easier when the only people he was with could take care of themselves.

On the day they headed out, they split into three cars.

Daryl, Beth, Merle, Carol, Maggie and Glenn in a big SUV.

Rick, Michonne, Carl and Judith in another.

Abraham, Rosita, Eugene, Tara, Sasha, Bob and Noah all loaded into an R.V.

With Beth's feet up on the dash, and her hand wrapped around his, he could almost pretend things were normal and it was before.

All he had to do was block out the walkers that littered the roadway the further they got north.

* * *

A/N: I know this is probably something you wanted to see changed, so I'm sorry for anymore heartache. I love Tyreese, and I think his death on the show was one of the best ones ever. I have reasons for keeping some things the way they are in the show, but if I said everything you wouldn't need to read the rest of the story...lol


	21. Chapter 21

Ch. 21

Thank you all so much for reading!

* * *

Daryl had never felt so cold during late fall, but as he lugged the food from the trunk of Rick's car to the R.V., he was shivering.

"Ya alright?" Beth asked quietly as she walked to his side.

He had leaned against the R.V. and was taking deep breaths, his stomach churning a little. Since he laid down from his watch the night before, he had been feeling bad.

"Yeah, just feelin' off s'all."

Beth lifted a hand to his forehead, and he almost laughed because no one had ever done that to him before.

"Daryl, you're really hot," she said. "How long have ya felt this way?"

"This mornin' I guess. Maybe last night a little. I'll be fine." He tried to walk past her, but he got a little light headed and leaned against the car.

Beth shook her head. "A fever isn't somethin' we can brush off anymore."

"It ain't like we got medicine."

"Yeah, well, we'll keep an eye on it. For now, go rest in the car. We'll let Merle drive for awhile."

Daryl nodded, his head starting to throb. "Okay."

Beth walked with him over to the car and opened up the door, he slipped inside and laid down across the middle bench seat.

"I'll be right back."

Once the door was shut again, he threw his arm over his eyes to block the light. It had started out feeling a little like a hangover when he woke up, but as the day progressed, the worse he felt. Even the little bit of water he drank turned his stomach, but he tried to push on.

They were just about three hours from D.C., and the last thing he needed was to be getting sick right now.

Once the car was back in motion, Beth placed his head on her lap and started stroking his hair. It felt nice, but his stomach was getting the better of him. Maggie leaned over the seat from the very back a few times to ask him how he was, but he let Beth answer for him. They hadn't gone far at all before he was telling Merle to pull over and he hopped out of the car, vomiting in the grass.

Beth was right behind him, knife drawn in case any walkers were around. He hadn't even thought of that kind of threat when he leapt from the vehicle, but at least Beth had his back.

"Ya okay?" she whispered.

"Nah," he muttered. "I fuckin' hate throwin' up."

"Me too," she said and took the red rag from his back pocket. "We'll get to D.C. soon, and we'll get ya doctor. I promise."

"Ummmhmmm." He let her help him back to the car then laid heavily into the seat.

They passed through D.C. about two hours later. Going into the city limits wasn't a possibility. There were huge barriers across the roads, but what was worse was that there were hundreds of walkers along those fences.

"It's gone," she had whispered against his cheek.

"We got pretty fuckin' good luck," he muttered.

They turned around and drove back towards Virginia. Not having a place in mind to go, but not willing to go north any longer.

It was a couple of hours before they stopped to find some fresh water. Daryl was still sick and laid up in the car. Beth stood outside his window, and he watched her body language to see what was going on outside.

Movement caught his eye from the opposite window as a walker popped into view. He hollered her name, and she saw it and lept into action. He laid there, his stomach flipping as more and more walkers flooded from the over grown field they had stopped beside.

That was a stupid move on their part. No vantage point.

He tried to sit up, but he ended up turning his head and dry heaving into the floorboard as the battle went on outside. He couldn't even hold his head up to see where she was or if she was still alive, and he didn't want walkers to hang around because he had been too loud or moving, so he laid still, closing his eyes and willing his stomach to settle down as the growls of the undead passed by the car, sometimes running into it.

It seemed to last forever, and the sun had lowered in the sky by the time the last of the walkers had passed.

He raised up and saw no life at all.

Daryl closed his eyes and groaned as he saw what looked like a body over in the grass, walkers surrounding it, but he couldn't tell who it was. His eyes were blurry, and he was getting dizzy just from sitting up.

The walkers around the body hit the ground after several silent shots, and Daryl watched as two men stepped into the road. One caught his eye and went to him, opening the door and saying, "Are you bit?"

"Nah," he mumbled. "Sick."

The man nearest him looked to the other man behind him, and they nodded at each other. "We can get you help. We have a safe zone about an hour away."

"Beth," he whispered. "I need Beth."

He shook his head. "I'm sorry. We don't have her. Your people got overrun and had to leave. She probably figured you'd be safe in the car."

"Can't leave," he groaned and bent over, vomiting bile into the floorboard.

"You need fluids or you'll die. Then you'll be no good to Beth at all, right?" The other man said. A kind smile cut across his face, and Daryl nodded.

"Beth said I'm stubborn."

A hand touched his forehead before getting pulled back fast. "Are you sure you're not bit? You're burning up."

"Not bit," he slurred and went to lay back down.

"Eric, get the truck. We got to get him back."

"My bow," he said. "I need Beth and my bow."

"I've got your bow," the man said. "We'll find Beth."

Daryl nodded and blackness clouded his vision as he passed out.

* * *

This run reminded her of the one after the prison, walkers on their heels, no end in sight, and leaving something precious behind her.

Merle had to drag her away, screaming as the walkers surrounded the car, leaving Daryl inside.

By nightfall, she had cried as much as she could while sprinting through the woods. Rick carried Judith most of the time then she took over once they were a good bit ahead of the walkers.

"We need to hide. Let 'em pass then go back for Daryl," she said as everyone breathed hard.

They had lost Tara at the very beginning of the attack because she had pushed Sasha out of the way and ended up taking the bite herself. If Daryl had stumbled out, trying to find her and fight them off, they would have lost two people in one day.

Sasha leaned against a tree with Bob next to her, trying to talk to her, but she just looked like she was in shock. She had tried to grab Tara back, but it had been too late. Beth remembered what that was like, having someone ripped apart as you held onto them. She shook her head to clear it of the image of Patricia and the farm and an entire lifetime ago it seemed.

"We will, but we can still hear 'em behind us, Beth," Rick said. "We can't double back yet."

"Then just let me," she begged. "I'll be quiet."

"No, girl," Merle said and shook his head. "Daryl's smart. He wouldn't've left that car after he saw how many there were. Him distractin' ya woulda got ya killed. He's still there."

"For how long?" She asked quietly. "He's sick. What if he dies?"

Everyone got so quiet that the walker growls grew more pronounced. "We can't think about it yet. We gotta move for now."

Her mind stayed on Daryl, but she ran further away from him, walkers still on their trail.

_Please, God, keep him safe._

It was on loop in her thoughts as she ran through the woods and took step after step away from him.

* * *

Daryl woke up in a soft bed with cool sheets.

After blinking a few times, his eyes adjusted to the light, and he looked around the room. It was a neat bedroom, books lining one bookshelf and a huge bay window in front of him that let in tons of afternoon light.

He wasn't sure how long he had been out, but he knew for certain that Beth wasn't wherever he was.

Daryl tried to stand and the I.V. pulled at his arm, so he grabbed the pole and used it as a cane to walk himself to the window. He blinked again as he looked out over the front yard of the house he was in.

The grass was green and trimmed. The streets were clean and the houses were all in tact.

He looked down the road, and he drew in a sharp breath at the huge steel wall that circled the community.

A throat cleared from the door, and the man that saved him walked inside. "Well, you've already looked around, so I guess I should just say, 'Welcome to Alexandria'."

"Alexandria?"

"Yes, Alexandria, Virginia."

"We were north of y'all. We were near D.C. How the fuck will she find me?" The man tried to move forward, but Daryl charged forward. "Take me back!" He hollered, his head swimming at all the movement. "Right the fuck now!"

"It's been days," the man said. "You were very dehydrated."

The room spun a little as he tried to focus on the man. "Fuck," he whispered. "No."

* * *

The first thing she saw when she broke through the trees was the SUV's door was open. She gasped as she ran towards the back door. Merle was at her heels, and they stopped side-by-side. Beth gripped the frame of the vehicle looked at the old vomit that had dried on the floor, knowing it hadn't been there when they had ran.

He was gone.

She imagined him getting worried about her, trying to help, thinking he wasn't as sick as he was.

Beth felt Maggie curl her body around hers, rocking her softly. She didn't say anything, though, and she was grateful for that.

It was Carl's voice that finally got their attention. "His bow's gone. Daryl wouldn't go anywhere without his bow."

Beth snapped her eyes up to him and started looking around. Merle was already up the road a few hundred yards when he yelled, "New tracks in the mud. There was a car here a coupla days ago."

"Where were they headed?" Rick asked as Merle walked toward him.

"South."

Everyone looked around before nodding. If that was the only thing they had to go on, then that was what they would take. After they buried the remains of their lost, they all loaded back into the cars that they had abandoned and went back the way they came.

* * *

They only drove thirty minutes before they stopped on the side of the road.

"There's no real way of knowin' which direction they went," Rick said. He looked at Beth. "We gotta find a place to last the winter. Maybe we stick around here, and we'll look for Daryl, too."

"We're just gonna give up?" She asked.

"Those tracks were from the day we got separated. No tellin' where he is, but once he's better, I'm sure he'll come back to this area, so we don't need to go too far. He'll look where he last saw us," Merle said and patted her shoulder.

Beth closed her eyes for a moment then looked around the group. They were battered, morale was at an all time low, and they were three members down.

"Okay," she whispered. "We'll stick close."

It took a little while, but they found a house they could stay in that night. It was down a county road with woods surrounding it.

There were no fences or protection from walkers. The windows hadn't been boarded up and the first floor had a wrap around porch with easy access to the windows.

She could imagine Daryl's hesitation as Rick declared it their place to stay for the night.

"I'll take first watch," Merle said and stood up.

Beth almost volunteered to go with him, but Carol beat her to it. Since they had gotten overrun, Carol had stuck close to Merle. It seemed like she thought he was going to break down after leaving Daryl behind.

"Ya all right?" Maggie asked as she sat down beside her.

Beth shook her head. "Nah, I'm really not. He could be anywhere. Good people. Bad people. What if he got taken by a group like the one that killed all those people in Richmond?"

"Daryl's strong," her sister said quietly. "He's gonna survive this."

She wanted to shake Maggie. She _knew_ Daryl was strong. She _knew_ he was capable. He was also sick, vomiting, dehydrated, and alone when they left him. He was hard headed, and he would do anything he had to do to find her again. She knew that.

After Maggie left her to go and look for Glenn upstairs, Beth sat there on the couch and picked at the sleeve of her sweater. It was gray and ripped now, but when she had found it, it had been pretty. That had been a long, long time ago, though.

"Do you mind if I sit with ya?" Noah asked and pointed to the furthest end of the couch.

She shrugged and waved her hand. "Don't matter to me."

They sat quietly in the darkness for a long time before he whispered, "They don't know the kind of people me and you are."

Beth looked over at him and tilted her head in confusion. "What?"

"The cops that tried to take you. They thought you were weak. They thought I was weak, too. I waited, though. Snuck out meds here and there at first then just decided to go all in. I drugged 'em with their evenin' meals right after I broke the medicine cabinet open. There was no way to kill 'em all, but they made the mistake of thinkin' physical weakness meant mental weakness. I got out, offered to take some of the wards with me, but no one wanted to go. I took a car and headed home, but home wasn't there no more."

Beth sat quietly, thinking about his story and the men that had tried to take her from the funeral home. "Bad people seem to be risin' to the top," she said.

Noah shook his head. "The good'll catch back up. It just takes a little longer for them to reason it out."

"There's no time to reason out here. Ya either get killed or ya kill."

Noah stared at her for a moment then asked, "Is it really that cut and dry?"

Beth looked at the red rag she had tied around her wrist. She had been washing it out when the walkers came and she had to run, so she had stuffed it into her pocket. Daryl's dark blue eyes flashed through her thoughts and she nodded. "It is. If I find out the people that took Daryl hurt him or killed him," she choked on the last word, "I'll burn their world down."

Noah shifted away from her then looked at his feet.

He didn't say anything else, and she knew she didn't need to.


	22. Chapter 22

Ch. 22

Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing! This is where things start to pick up, and I really hope you like it.

* * *

He had been out of it for two days then spent the next five awake and in quarantine, gathering up his strength again. He used to push right on through being sick, but after not having much food or water, Daryl struggled to get back on his feet.

The doctor wouldn't let him out of the converted house clinic because he had come in with a fever, and they didn't know if he was contagious and didn't want to risk it spreading if he was. All Daryl wanted to do was walk out the door, but he rested, ate their food, and tried to come up with a solid plan of getting back to his group.

The leader, a woman named Deanna, came to visit him on the seventh day, but the conversation hadn't been a long one. He made it perfectly clear he wasn't here to audition, as she called it. He wanted to take his ass to that gate and try and track his family.

"I gotta woman out there," he told her. "I got my brother, and others that I've known since this shit went down. Ain't got time to sit around here no more. I appreciate all ya've done for me, but it's time for me to go."

"What if you brought your family back? You seem like a decent person, Daryl. We need good people here."

He stared at her long and hard as he answered, "I've only looked out that window, and I know y'all got no idea what it's like outside these walls. Y'all prolly tryin' to hold onto what that world was before, but that ain't how things work now. There's no soft left anymore."

Deanna gave him a tight smile then walked out of the room, making sure to shut the door quietly. He had followed walked to the door and heard the tail end of her conversation with Aaron.

"Find his people and bring them back," she said confidently. "You said that you followed them briefly before it went down?"

"Uh, yes, we followed them the day they got separated, but we only heard things when they stopped. Most of that time they were driving."

"And?"

"They seemed like more of a family than a group. There's a certain hierarchy, of course. Even though Daryl was sick, it seemed like he was one of their leaders just based on how they spoke of him. The man in charge, Rick, is the one that probably won't settle in well here. He doesn't seem like the type to take orders."

Daryl knew he was speaking the truth, but it still pissed him off a little. Rick was a good man, went a little cuckoo from time to time, but hell, everyone did in this world. These people just didn't realize that.

"Well, we'll need them here. Aiden and Nicholas found some more bodies in the woods with the 'W' in their foreheads. They're getting closer, and we have firepower, but we don't have experience."

Daryl backed away from the door and went back to the bed. His head was in his hands as Aaron walked inside.

"So, we were just talking and it looks like you're doing well enough to leave. This is a good place, Daryl. Your group would do well here."

Daryl knew what the Wolves could do. He had seen it himself. On the other hand, he knew what him and his could do, too. If they could keep this place safe from the Wolves, they could change things here to make it a place to stay, a good home.

He thought of Beth in a house with electricity and running water, with a nice, soft bed and clean clothes. Judith and Carl finally able to sleep through the night and grow up in a place that didn't have them running every few months.

"Yeah," he said with a nod. "Ya think you can help me find 'em?"

"Absolutely," Aaron said with a sincere smile.

He hadn't lied, he hadn't coerced, and by the look in his eyes he knew that Daryl was also keeping some things close to his chest, too.

After all, it was stupid to show your hand right off the bat.

* * *

It had taken her almost all morning, but she finally headed back to the cabin with two rabbits. She was glad that Daryl taught her how to track in the first place. Merle had gone early that morning toward the road to look around, and she had turned the opposite direction.

They had really screwed themselves over by picking that cabin to stay in. As of right now, they were about an hour from locked up D.C. and thirty minutes from any town with stores or homes to scavenge. There was little to no food anywhere. On top of all that, the cars were so low on gas that they would only be used if they had to make a run for it.

It was such a terrible situation, and there was no way to look for Daryl other than on foot for the time being. They had no choice but to stay put and hope he would come back, and after winter, they might have to move on without him.

Well, the others would move on. Beth knew that even if her family left, her and Merle would stay and continue to look and wait for Daryl.

"Got lunch," she called out when she walked back up the steps to the cabin.

No one opened the door to greet her, and for the first time she noticed that no one was on watch. Beth took a deep breath, and tossed the rabbits to the ground before pulling her knife. Slowly, she went to the window, peeking around the frame to try and see inside.

They had covered the windows as best she could, so seeing anything was hard. Plus, Abraham was standing right in her way to see who was talking.

"I've been lookin' everywhere for ya."

Beth turned around slowly, and her breath caught when she saw him. He was paler than usual and looked tired, but it was Daryl, holding onto the crossbow strap across his body like it was lifeline.

She slid her knife into its sheath and took off for him. When his arms wrapped around her, she almost collapsed in relief. Then the tears started flowing, and she couldn't stop them. "I didn't know where to look," she sobbed. "I didn't know who took ya or where ya coulda gone."

"I know," he whispered. "I know. I told 'em to take me back as soon as I woke up, arrow. I was so fuckin' worried about ya."

"Who took ya? Where?" She asked as she pulled away. Her hands were on his cheeks then in his hair, pulling him down to kiss before he could answer.

His hands went to her hips, and he pulled her against him before running his tongue along her bottom lip. Beth groaned into the kiss and tugged on his hair just a little to get him to do the same. In a matter of seconds, he had her pressed up against the nearest tree, his body caging hers in, as they continued to kiss and touch.

A throat cleared from behind them and Maggie said, "Well, that's somethin' I never thought I'd see."

Daryl leaned his forehead against hers and tried to catch his breath.

"I's in Alexandria. It's a safe zone. The people there," he whispered against her cheek, making it look like he was still kissing on her, "they're sheltered, weak. Don't trust 'em."

Beth closed her eyes and turned her face into his neck. "Is it really safe?"

"For now," he whispered against her ear before he pulled away completely.

"You must be Beth," a man she had never seen before said. He walked forward and held out his hand. "My name's Aaron. My partner and I found Daryl after you all had to run."

"You saw us run?" She asked and narrowed her eyes at him.

Aaron smiled softly. "We had been following your group, trying to get a feel for you all, and if you'd fit in where we live."

"Spyin' on us?"

"I know. It's not the best way to make friends, but I believe in transparency here. We need good people for our community, and you don't just invite anyone to live with you. We were protecting ourselves."

Beth nodded but didn't like the idea that they had been watched and listened to at all. "How in the world did ya get close enough to us? Someone woulda heard ya."

He cleared his throat and looked down. "We have long range equipment."

"Oh, well, that makes it so much better," she muttered and grabbed Daryl's hand. "C'mon, I got lunch and since you're back with me, I don't have to clean 'em."

Once they had the rabbits and were seated at the edge of the yard, Merle walked over and nodded at his brother.

"This place sounds too good to be true," he said and leaned against a tree.

"It's nice," Daryl agreed. "Those same roamers from Noah's place are around, though. The leader seems to think they're gonna try and make a play for the safe zone, and she wants help."

"They tell ya that?" Merle asked.

Daryl shook his head. "Nah, I overheard it."

Merle hummed, and they fell into silence. Carol walked over and stood next to Merle.

"I don't trust these people, Daryl."

Pretty soon, everyone but Aaron was circled around Daryl as he cleaned the rabbits, each asking him a question about the safe zone. He told them all the same things he had told her, and Rick was nodding along with him.

"I didn't get out of the house until the day me and Aaron left, so I don't know other people, but I can tell ya that the doctor is a fuckin' drunk, the leader is a politician, and Aaron might be one of the only genuine people there."

Rick sighed heavily. "So they need the man power to fight for 'em?"

"That, but they ain't never got their hands dirty before. They don't know how to kill people."

Rick nodded and looked down at his hands before tilting his head to look at Daryl. "If things fall apart in the battle, and we get left to fend for ourselves, do ya think we could turn it on 'em?"

"Ya mean, takin' it?" Glenn asked quietly.

Rick nodded but never took his eyes off Daryl. After a few seconds, Daryl nodded back.

"We play the game then," Rick said and looked at each of them. "Put on your best public face."

* * *

He held her hand tightly as they walked through the gates to the ASZ, as Aaron called it.

Deanna stood on the other side, open arms with a welcoming smile. "I'm so happy that you were able to find your people, Daryl." Her eyes flicked to Beth and back to him. He wondered what was going through her head as she looked at the young, pretty, blonde woman that was clutching his hand and her own bow in the other. "You must be the lady he was so eager to get back to."

"I'm Beth," she said and slung the bow over her shoulder to shake the woman's hand.

"Deanna Monroe."

Everyone else was ushered in and introduced briefly then taken to another section of the safe zone Daryl had never been to.

"We'll need you to surrender your weapons," she said calmly. "No one in the safe zone has them on their person. They have to be checked out through our armory."

Rick looked around and caught his eye for a second before nodding. "I've had this gun for years," he said quietly and sat it on the cart. "It's mine, so I'd appreciate it if I was the only person that got to handle it."

Deanna smiled. "Of course. Could you make a note of Mr. Grimes' gun, Olivia?"

"Absolutely." The woman pushing the cart said and took out a tag and attached it to Rick's gun.

The others filed through, each laying down their guns, Carol almost tripping over herself to get the strap over her head and Merle stepped forward to help her. Daryl didn't miss the eye roll from his brother as Carol smiled and played off her clumsiness.

"Aaron will show you to your new homes then I'd like to start the interview process for each of you. Mr. Dixon has already completed his, so that's one down for the day."

* * *

"Could ya be anymore obvious," Merle asked once they were alone in their own room.

"What do you mean, sweetheart?" She asked in such a sugary voice Merle leaned away.

"Don't like it," he muttered. "Ya keep actin' like Suzy fuckin' Homemaker, and they're gonna wonder why you're with my ass."

"Obviously, I need the protection of a big, strong man like you," she said and shrugged with a little grin. "It's such a horrible world we live in, and you were so kind to me."

He sat down on the edge of the bed and glared at her. "This ain't gonna work."

"It will," she said back I her normal tone. "It has to." She walked over to him and stood between his knees. Her hands were planted on his shoulders and he tilted his head up to look at her. "We all have to play a part, Merle. Even you."

"What's my part?" He asked and ran his hands from her thighs to her hips and squeezed a little.

"You're the hardass that gets shit done, but you're devoted to little ol' me and love your brother and his wife."

Merle nodded. "All that's true already."

Carol leaned down a little and kissed him, taking his top lip between hers. The sensation sent little sparks shooting up his spine. He tried to pull her down on the bed, roll on top of her, but she moved away, laughing a little.

"C'mon, woman, it's been fuckin' years," he whined.

"Oh, I know what you mean. I still miss my vibrator," she said jokingly. "You'll survive, buttercup."

He threw himself back against the pillows and closed his eyes as the door clicked shut softly behind her.

* * *

Beth sat on the bed, looking out the wide-open window.

The sun was shining, birds were chirping. She heard children laughing in the street and the low hum of water running from somewhere in the house. Sometime along the way, this had become foreign to her. She was out of place, uncomfortable, skittish.

Daryl sat down on the bed next to her and took her hand.

"Ya okay?"

She nodded. "I'm just overwhelmed, I guess."

"Ya should go and use the shower. Bet you'll feel like a new person," he said and bumped his shoulder with hers.

"What about you?"

She looked at Daryl, taking him in. His face and arms were covered in a thick layer of dirt. His hair was greasy and sticking to his forehead.

"Maybe one day."

Beth looked down at her own arms and hands. Dirt and grim were all over, and the underside of her fingernails were black. She didn't even want to think about her hair right now.

She stood up and took his hand, walking to the bathroom that was connected to their room. The houses in the ASZ were all built for people with lots and lots of money. There were three bedrooms upstairs and they all had their own private bathrooms.

"What're ya doin'?" He asked with a small grin that made the corner of his lip twitch up.

"We're gonna feel like new people," she answered and drug him along behind her.

Once the water was turned on and heating up, they took off their clothes. She noticed for the first time just how stiff and caked with dirt and blood her jeans and shirt were. Her bra was threadbare and almost falling apart. Her panties were in equally bad shape.

When she looked at Daryl, his jeans and flannel were tossed to the ground, slightly cleaner than hers because they had washed his stuff when he'd been laid up in bed here. He looked a little uncomfortable standing there, and she realized that they had never done this.

Just stand in front of the other, fully naked, not worrying that someone would hear or walk in on them or that walkers would show up and they'd be caught unprepared.

The steam filled the air and he looked away before crossing his arms across his chest.

"We gonna just stand around all day or we gonna get in there?"

He was trying to look like he didn't care, but she could tell otherwise. His cheeks were flushed, and it had nothing to do with the warmth of the bathroom.

"C'mon," she said and stepped into the shower, motioning for him to follow.

It wasn't big by any means, and maybe that was for the best. This way they both caught some of the hot water and one wasn't left to freeze as the other stood under the spray.

There was a little bottle of shampoo and a bar of soap inside and they took turns wiping their own bodies and cleaning their hair. She watched as some of the dirt swirled around the drain and the rest left a ring around the tub.

Once the last of the shampoo was out of her hair, she stepped out of the spray and let him lean into it and clean his own hair.

Beth leaned back against the cold tile and closed her eyes. If she wasn't careful, she would forget that all of this was temporary.

No place stayed safe for long.

"What're thinkin' about?"

She looked at him and shrugged. His hair was slicked back and without all the dirt on his face, his eyes didn't look as dark blue as they had been. His shoulders were broad and his body was lanky but muscled. His arms were strong and toned with corded muscles along his forearms.

Without speaking, she scooted forward and wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest.

Daryl didn't hesitate to hug her back.

"Ya alright?"

She made a small noise and nodded.

He lifted her chin and kissed her softly, walking her back against the wall before pressing his lower half against her.

"Don't wanna slip," he said as he pulled back. He turned off the water then got out and grabbed a towel for each of them.

She had barely gotten her upper body wiped off before he had her sitting on the counter and was spreading her legs open with his hands. His lips went to her neck for a split second before he dropped to his knees in front of her and pulled her closer to the edge.

There was nothing slow about what he was doing. He was pushing her as quickly as he could, and she tangled her hands in his hair to keep him in place while she bit her bottom lip to stop from being loud. It didn't work well, and soon her low moans were filling the small room.

"Oh my God," she whispered sharply. Her legs closed involuntarily around his head, and she hunched forward as she came.

He pushed her legs away and stood up, wiping off his mouth with his hand before he kissed her again. It was slow, and she was so warm and relaxed. Daryl pulled her against him and picked her up before walking into the bedroom and laying her down on the bed.

He wasted no time in moving over her and going back to kissing down her neck and across her chest.

"Been a long time since we had a bed," he mumbled against her breast.

"Ummhmm," she voiced and twisted under him.

Daryl gripped her thigh and pulled it up and around his waist then thrust into her in one smooth stroke.

The bed didn't squeak or hit the wall. There was no noise except the sounds of their breathing and the moans that they tried to hold back.

He tried so hard to make her come again. Daryl brought his hand down to where they met and stroked her, he sucked and nipped at her breasts, but it all seemed to be too much for him. After only a few minutes of moving over her and sliding in and out with forceful snaps of his hips, he was groaning against her neck and pulling away to come against the inside of her thighs.

"Damn," he muttered. "Sorry."

She felt herself laugh softly and smile. "There's nothin' to be sorry about, but we might need another shower."

Daryl snorted and rolled away.

With the sun shining so bright and them smelling like soap and sex with the comfortable bed beneath them, she could imagine this was all real. It was before, and life was amazing.

Beth decided right then that whenever they were in this room, that's how she would view it. Forget the rest of the ASZ. Inside this room was the real safe zone.


	23. Chapter 23

Ch. 23

I'm back to updating twice a week because it actually makes me write faster when I have a deadline.

Let's see how things are going for our group...

* * *

Beth sat in the high back reading chair across from Deanna and tried to look at ease.

The truth was, having a camera pointed at her was unnerving, especially after not having any electronics for the last two and half years.

"So, what did you do before all this?" Deanna asked as she leaned back into the couch.

"I was a high school student. I sang in the church choir, and I babysat on the weekends."

"So, a typical teenage girl?"

"I guess." She shrugged and attempted a smile.

Silence filled the room and Deanna cleared her throat before leaning forward. "I hear from Aaron that you're a decent hunter and tracker."

Beth nodded slightly. "I didn't learn that until after. Daryl taught me."

"Ah, Mr. Dixon. There's a bit of an age gap there," she stated and raised her eyebrow.

"Yeah," Beth responded slowly. In truth, it had been a very long time since she had even thought about that. The playing field was even with them. They were partners in all this.

"He could be your father," she said with little emotion. "Where you're at mentally and emotionally could be worlds different."

"Ya really don't know Daryl or me," she said and looked out the window to her right. "Ya don't know what we've been through together or even how we function as a couple. I'm an adult and can make decisions for myself."

"So, the age difference doesn't bother you at all? What about having children one day?"

Beth laughed softly. "Don't mention that to Daryl. Ya might give him a heart attack since he's so old and all."

Deanna leaned back and hummed. "You don't want children?"

Beth met her gaze and gave her a sad smile. "I always wanted a child, but all we do is run. I see what that does to Carl, to Judith. What kind of life is that?" Beth paused then said, "What's this interview for anyway?"

"Just to figure out who you are, so I know where to place you for work," she answered.

Instead of waiting for more questions, she dove into her story. "My name's Beth Greene. I'm almost nineteen years old. I know because it's gettin' cold and it's been three winters since this started. I'm good with kids. I sing and play the piano. I can hunt and track. I'm gettin' very good with a bow, and I'm a good shot with a rifle. Knife work is kinda iffy. Daryl wanted to teach me how to throw 'em, but I'm better with up close stuff. My basic survival skills are on point."

"What does that mean?" Deanna asked. "That the basic skills are on point?"

Beth shrugged. "I'm not afraid to kill someone if they threaten me or my family anymore."

Deanna's face was a blank mask. "I think that's good enough for now." Beth stood up to leave, and she continued, "I think you'll be fine here, Beth. We don't need wishy-washy apologists anymore, and I think you've proven that you're not either of those things."

"I'm not," she said with a smile, wanting nothing more to run back to Daryl.

* * *

"Losing a hand is a pretty gruesome injury."

She pulled him from his thoughts as she turned on the camera and sat down.

"It's not one of the fun ones, that's for sure."

"Tell me how you lost it," she said.

"Back of a beat up Chevy when I was fifteen. She was older and took the lead," he said with a smirk. "Ours wasn't a love meant to last, though."

She snorted and almost cracked a real grin. "Thank you for sharing, Mr. Dixon. Now, if you would explain how you lost your hand, that'd be great."

"It might come as a shock, but I wasn't always a very friendly guy."

"I wouldn't have guessed it," she sassed with a true smile.

"When I first met Rick, I's in a pretty bad place. It was early on in the outbreak, and I still had some crystal left. That shit turned me mean and belligerent. I ended up handcuffed to a roof in downtown Atlanta.

"Walkers came and the group had to run. The key got dropped down a drain pipe. The man that did that managed to chain the door to the roof closed, though. Nothin' was gettin' through that chain, and if I hadn't been so damn high, maybe I'd've realized that. But I _was_ high, and I was hallucinatin'. I took my belt off, and I managed to throw it until I caught the buckle on a saw and pulled it over to me.

"I hacked away at my fuckin' forearm for awhile. Almost passed out." He paused then cleared his throat. "I've done a lot of stupid stuff, Ms. Monroe. That's near the top of the list. Shoulda just tried to cut off my damn thumb first."

She hummed and stared at him for a moment like she was taking in his answer. "You don't strike me as Carol's type."

He laughed a little. "Nah, she's a lot better than me. I guess you could say the apocalypse has been kind to us Dixons in that regard."

"What regard?"

"Women," he answered honestly. "Ya think either of 'em would have looked our way before the end of the world?"

"You're talking about your brother and Beth?"

"Did you interview another Dixon?"

"You think you're not worth their companionship?"

"My baby brother's never seemed like a happy man, but he smiles around her. She makes him happy in all this. I think he deserves that."

There was a silent pause in their rapid-fire conversation before she asked, "What about you?"

"Carol's my friend first."

Deanna switched gears. "What did you do before this?"

He thought back to the shine shack and what Daryl had told Beth; how he thought how right he had been.

"Just some redneck asshole."

"Did you have a job?"

He shook his head. "Nothin' stable. Pushed drugs sometimes, did some odd jobs to get money other times."

She got quiet for a minute then asked, "Where do you think you'd fit here?"

"Don't really think my opinion matters. I'm good on runs, and I'm a hell of a shot."

"Do you hunt like your brother?"

"Yeah, ain't got his sense of direction, though." That was the only time he would ever admit that out loud, and he would deny it forever it she mentioned it to Daryl. The last thing he needed though was to get stuck with a group and lose his bearings, though, so he was honest.

"Well, we'll see what we can find for you, Mr. Dixon."

He stood up and started to walk away. "Enough of the 'Mr. Dixon' shit."

"If that's what you want."

He closed the door behind him and went back to where they were staying down the street. The dog and pony show wasn't for him, but he really couldn't get out of it, so he would go along just like everyone else, but he wasn't about to cover up who he used to be.

When he got to their house, he walked up the steps and went to stand by Daryl who was sitting on the railing, cleaning his bolts.

"How'd it go," he asked without looking up.

"Bullshit."

Daryl made a noise and nodded.

At that moment, Carol walked out of the house, and they both looked up at her.

She was wearing a button up shirt and cardigan with a pair of khakis and loafers. Her hair was still messy, and she looked like she was wearing lipstick.

"What the hell are ya doin'?" Daryl asked.

"Took the words right outta my mouth," Merle added.

Carol sighed. "We need to play a part here," she said and straightened her already fixed cardigan.

"I ain't pretendin' shit," Daryl said gruffly.

"Me neither," Merle agreed.

"Then stick out like sore thumbs. I'm gonna slip right in, and in a couple of days, I'll know everythin' that goes on here."

She walked off the porch steps and looked back up, sending them a fake smile and small wave. "See you boys, later," she said cheerfully.

It rubbed Merle to wrong way and he yelled, "Ya look ridiculous!"

She didn't turn around, and he turned to Daryl. "What the fuck is happenin' around here?"

Daryl shook his head. "I don't know, man. Feels like it's gonna get away from us, don't it?"

"Without a fuckin' doubt," Merle agreed and leaned back against the house. "This is gonna be a clusterfuck."

* * *

Beth slipped up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He relaxed a little and sighed.

"There's a big party tonight to welcome us all here."

He groaned.

"I know," she said. "Let's skip it. I really don't think I can deal with an evenin' full of people pretendin' like everythin's okay."

"Then we'll stay up here."

"Do ya think we should tell 'em we're not gonna be there?"

Daryl shrugged. "Fuck 'em."

Beth let go of him and walked back to the bed and laid down. He followed after her, and once he was laying on his back beside her, she curled around him.

"I think this place is just a huge distraction," she whispered.

"What'd ya mean?"

She shook her head against his shoulder. "It's like an oasis or somethin'. Like we're still in the middle of all this terrible shit, and we think we're safe 'cause we see this sanctuary, but it turns out it's not really all that safe, ya know?"

He nodded. "We need to keep our eyes open," he said.

"I have a feelin' like some people have already closed theirs."

Daryl didn't say anything, but he had the same feeling she did.

* * *

A week into living inside the safe zone, and Daryl and Beth still had no jobs.

Rick and Michonne were constables, and Rick had put Merle in charge of keeping the wall safe. When Merle asked him why he didn't pick Daryl, he said, "I did, but Deanna said she needs to think on him some more."

Merle had asked for Daryl's help, and he gave it. Beth looked after Judith, and tried to talk sense into Carl after she saw him hop the fence.

They were stuck in a weird limbo, and Daryl was tired of it.

"We gotta get up," Beth muttered into his shoulder.

"I'm stayin' in today, and so are you."

"Oh yeah? And who'll take care of Judith?"

"Carol. She told me to tell ya last night that she was takin' her around to the ladies this mornin'."

"Why?" Beth asked and sat up.

"She said that women love babies and these haven't seen one in so long that they'll lap that shit up."

"So, it's an in for her?"

They were making a game of the things Carol was doing to get to that inner circle of Alexandria woman. She was capitalizing on them not having shit to do but sit around and visit.

"Pretty much."

"At least we'll get the house to ourselves," she whispered and leaned over him.

"That was the plan," he admitted with a small grin.

* * *

Merle absolutely hated the Stepford look Carol had been sporting since they got there. Hated even more that she was playing up the weak, defenseless woman stereotype.

She moved to get out of bed, and he pulled her back to him with his bad arm.

"Just stay. Those bitches'll still be there in a bit."

She snorted. "I need to get dressed."

Over the last few days, she had kissed him a few times, but a couple of them didn't count because they were in front of other people, and she was using him. Merle didn't like feeling like a prop, but she wouldn't talk to him about it. Hell, she hadn't talked to him much at all since the welcoming party.

Who would have thought he would have been the one pissed about the lack of communication in his relationship?

"C'mon," he said quietly then kissed the side of her neck, sucking lightly.

She rolled over and let him keep going for just a little bit before she pulled him up to kiss her lips.

He slipped his hand under her shirt, and she stiffened as he moved over her ribs. At first he thought she was just ticklish and didn't want to flinch on him, then she stopped moving her lips and went completely still.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothin'."

The look on her face wasn't nothing, though. Her eyes were blank and distant.

"Ya alright?"

"I'm fine," she said.

Merle rolled away and looked up at the ceiling. He took two steadying breaths before he sat up and grabbed his pants off the floor.

He had never shared a room with a woman for more than a night, so living and sharing a space with Carol was new for him. All of it was new.

She kept her clothes folded or hung up, and he just tossed his down beside the bed. He didn't have much so he wore the same thing a few days in a row. She had something new every day.

Once his pants were fixed, he tugged on his button up then grabbed his prosthetic and started buckling the straps.

"If ya don't want me like that, it's fine," he said quietly. "I ain't gonna push ya. Do ya just wanna be friends or somethin'?" He asked and turned towards her. "Ya like me 'cause we match up in a lotta ways, but just not that one for ya?"

Her back was to him and her shoulders slumped a little.

"I don't know if I can, Merle. I've just—it's been years since it wasn't somethin' that was forced on me."

He nodded, not knowing what to say, but feeling his blood boil at the thought of her dead husband. Merle thought of her in tears from his beatings or numb to the bone after he held her down and raped her.

Merle started to walk to the door. "We'll do whatever ya want. I gotta get goin'. Daryl said he wasn't gonna help out today, and ya gotta get Judith, huh? Forgot about that." He was rambling, so he slipped out before she could say anything.

Suddenly, he wasn't too interested in keeping up conversation after all.

* * *

He worked the fence the rest of the day and avoided all the places that he knew she would be. It was almost dusk when he started back to the front gate and noticed that Daryl, Carol, and Rick were coming back inside.

His brother's face looked tight, but Carol went right back to smiling and waving at the ladies sitting on a nearby porch. Rick, though, made him stop. His eyes were narrowed, and he remembered that look from before Terminus. The one that said shit was about to go down.

"Hey, baby brother!" He called out, and Daryl looked his way. "Help me with this support beam."

Daryl seemed to sigh but nodded and walked his way. Rick went straight down the road, hand on the gun at his hip.

"What's goin' on?" Merle asked as he made a show of pressing his hands against the beam.

"A buncha bullshit," he said. "About lunch time, Deanna and Aaron showed up at the house. They want me and Beth to be a recruitin' team like him and Eric, but first she had a job for us."

"She wants y'all outta the way," Merle muttered.

"That's what I's thinkin', too. Then she started talkin' about those people that've been carving 'W's into people's heads. She wants us to track 'em, and then come back and take out a group to kill 'em before they attack here."

"Nah," Merle said and shook his head. "That's fuckin' crazy to send you and Beth out there. For all we fuckin' know, those woods are theirs already, and y'all are just walkin' into a trap."

"I know, but she didn't really give us much of a choice."

"What the fuck's that mean?"

Daryl was chewing on his bottom lip and looked away. "If we don't take the job they give us, we're supposed to leave."

Merle shook his head. "Fuck 'em. We'll leave now."

"I went and got Rick and Carol. Took 'em out, and told him all about it. Carol's been sneakin' into the armory. Did ya know that?"

"What?" With all the information he was being given, it felt like his world was getting turned upside down.

"Gave us guns after I told 'em, and then let it slip that Jessie's gettin' wailed on by her husband."

He closed his eyes. "Who?"

"Carol really hadn't been tellin' ya anythin' she's found out?"

"Obviously not," he said quietly and tried to push away the embarrassment at that.

Daryl sighed. "Jessie's that woman that cut Rick's hair. Her husband is the doctor. Ya met him, right?"

"Yeah." The image of the tall, blonde man flashed in his mind. Merle knew he was a drunk, and it wasn't too far off to assume he might get a little handsy after he had a few.

"Well, Rick's been sniffin' around her a lot, and the doc don't like it too much. Carol thinks that he's been beatin' her for awhile. Said she just knows it. She stole the guns so that we'd have somethin' if we needed to take over, but she wants Rick to kill Pete. I'm pretty sure that this is her way of gettin' Rick invested in shit again. She's playin' him, but he's lettin' her."

He just shook his head. It was so hard for him to believe what Daryl was saying, but Carol would know, wouldn't she? She had been easing her way into the inner circle with kind smiles and cookies. She probably knew every single thing that went on inside these walls, and she hadn't shared a damn thing with him.

"He gonna do it?" Merle asked finally.

"Who the fuck knows," Daryl said.

In the end, they did straighten up a few beams before calling it a night and heading back to the house.

Daryl went straight up to his and Beth's room where she must have been, and Merle sat down at the kitchen counter and watched Carol cook.

The others were all milling around, not paying attention, or they had gone to the other house to shower. They were lucky. Half the the safe zone had lost power the day before because something blew out in the solar panels for that area. That was another issue that needed solving.

"Ya ever gonna tell me about the shit you're pullin'?" He asked as he ran his fingertips along the smooth marble of the countertop. Stupid fucking house, he thought. This wasn't real. None of it was. This wasn't the real world anymore.

"No," she said quietly. "Daryl open his big mouth?"

"He tells me things I need to know."

Carol turned around and slammed her hands down on the counter. Maggie looked their way but quickly turned back around and walked down the hall. Another lover's spat, in their eyes. So damn stupid.

"Believe it or not, Merle, but I'm tryin' to protect you," she said in a whisper. "You make people uncomfortable. You're loud, you're scary, and they think they've let the outside come in with you and Daryl. I spend my days singin' your praises. I bring Judith around and tell them how without Daryl, she wouldn't have lived since we didn't have formula.

"I tell them Beth isn't strange. She's just quiet and still in shock since her father was murdered right in front of her, and then she was almost kidnapped."

"I told ya that in confidence," he whispered harshly. "She don't want no one to know how close it came, and now you're tellin' me ya told some gossipin' old bitches?"

"I do what needs to be done here. These people are children, and children like stories."

"Fuckin' bitch," he breathed.

"Go to hell, Merle," she said in a bored voice. "While you're walkin' the fence, I'm keepin' us alive, and in a position to keep this place. I didn't tell you anythin' 'cause if they ever find out, you know nothin'. You're not accountable at all."

"Fuck that. I can take care of myself."

"I know, but I do what I can."

He scoffed and closed his eyes. "So you're okay with Daryl and Beth bein' bait?"

She shook her head. "It's not gonna get that far. They'll go out and spend some time away, but they're not gonna get hurt."

"What that fuck's that mean? Ya don't know that."

Carol pulled a casserole dish out of the over and sat in on the stove. She sighed the said, "You have to watch all the pieces on the board then move 'em where you want 'em without it lookin' like it was your idea."

He stared at her a good long time before he scoffed and looked away. "Ya think you're protectin' us?"

"I know I am," she said seriously. "Just look around. Forget the new additions, they don't matter. Glenn is always on runs with Deanna's asshole son. Maggie is Deanna's protégé. Rick and Michonne got leadership positions right off the bat. Sasha's gone batshit crazy after Tyreese and Tara, and Bob can't help her at all. Rick's flirtin' with a married woman, and you missed the party, but you shoulda seen the kiss he laid on her cheek. If we're not careful, he's gonna screw us all.

"Then there's you, Daryl and Beth. Ya haven't tried to acclimate at all. Beth's showered regularly, I'll give her that, but she gives these people looks like they're insane, and they hate it. Daryl's silence and crossbow make him unapproachable, plus, gutting that damn possum on the porch didn't help either.

"So while everyone else is all worried about their new jobs or gettin' laid, I'm goin' and I'm doin'." She wiped her hands on her pants, and for the first time he realized that they hadn't spoken above a whisper this whole time, and no one was even snooping like they used to at the prison or even on the road.

"That's that then?" He asked and stood up.

"Yeah," she said. "That's that."

Merle left the kitchen and went up the stairs to their room.

According to Carol, the pieces were already in motion, but he wondered just what outcome she was hoping for.


	24. Chapter 24

Ch. 23

Huge author's note…sorry in advance!

I know a lot of readers are having a hard time with Carol right now, and I'm really happy about that, especially the ones that aren't sure whether they like her or hate her. Carol in this story (like the series) is imperfect and drastically changed from who she had been before Rick kicked her out of the prison. I will say this…she loves Merle. He's her best friend, and she truly believes that by keeping things from him, she is protecting him. Relationships are terribly tricky for these two, and since you're only getting Merle's POV, I really wanted to clarify that. Otherwise I feel like I'm doing Carol a disservice here.

Anyway, thank you so much for continuing read, review, and support my stories! These next few chapters are ones that I've really tried to get right, and I hope you feel the same way. This picks up with Daryl going upstairs at the end of the last chapter.

* * *

She was laying in the bed, trying to go to sleep. It wasn't that she was tired; she was just so fed up with everything that she thought if she went to sleep, maybe she would wake up in a better mood.

They came into her home. They told her what she was going to do or she would ruin it for everyone else. They were pawns, and from what Glenn had told Maggie who had told her, it wasn't the first time new recruits had been left to die or put in harm's way.

In fact, it seemed like Alexandria residents were trained to leave people behind. In the last week, Abraham had taken over the construction crew after all the men ran as walkers approached, leaving a woman right in their path.

These people were privilege cowards, and it made her stomach turn thinking about how that would run this safe zone into the ground.

"You awake?" Daryl asked quietly as he shut the door behind himself.

"Yeah," she whispered.

The bed dipped beside her, and he sighed but didn't speak.

She turned to face him and asked, "What did they say?"

He shrugged. "Said we need to go. Keep up appearances."

"We could be killed," she whispered. "And it wouldn't be quick, Daryl. We've seen what they can do, and I think they're in it for the sufferin'."

"I know, but we can't do shit about it. They've been findin' dead ones with that in their forehead and walkers all in the woods. It's like they're harvestin' 'em and lettin' 'em out when they need to. We ain't gonna go out there half-cocked. We'll be quiet and we'll look. No hero bullshit. We ain't gonna get close."

"What about everyone here? Everyone's losin' it a little since the solar panels went out. Glenn has to make a run with Aiden and Nicholas tomorrow, and they're makin' him take Noah, Eugene and Rosita with him. Abraham is super pissed about it, and Maggie says that Glenn doesn't trust Aiden or Nicholas. They're goin' to a freakin' warehouse. There could be tons of walkers inside."

"Nothin' we can do about it," he said and shook his head. "I don't like it either, but what else can we do?"

"We pack up our shit and leave," she said with conviction.

"Ya sound like Merle." He snorted then laid back on his pillow. "I think Carol's tryin' to pull off a take over without actually sayin' the words."

"What do ya mean?"

"She's pushin' Rick's hand about Pete."

Beth groaned. Everyone seemed to know that Pete was a waste of space, but no one did anything because he was their only doctor. Now, they had Bob, though, so nothing was stopping Deanna from getting rid of him, but still, she kept him on, and now they were dealing with the pissing contest between him and Rick.

Personally, she thought it was beyond stupid for Rick to put his sights on a woman who was married when something like that had been done to him, and it had resulted in him killing his best friend.

There was no talking sense into anyone, though.

Everyone was doing something stupid, and maybe she was, too, by acting like this was all above her. Politics weren't her thing, and sitting around drinking tea while walkers pushed up against the fence wasn't something she would ever do.

"Take this," he said and pushed a small handgun at her.

"Where'd ya get this," she said and sat up quickly.

"Carol," he answered quietly.

"Good lord. She's gonna get caught if she doesn't stop."

He didn't say anything, and she didn't expect him to either.

"Get our pack together," he said. "We'll head out tomorrow mornin' and stay gone a couple of days."

Beth nodded and got up while Daryl laid back on the bed. They were silent for a long time before someone knocked on their door.

"It's open," she called out.

Rosita poked her head in and smiled. "Hey, Aaron's downstairs. He said he needed to see you and Daryl."

"Thanks," Daryl answered gruffly then stood up.

She closed the door softly behind her, and once they were alone again, Beth said, "Wonder what we're gonna get threatened with now."

"Remember, he wasn't the one to tell us we had to go. He was just with her," he said and held out his hand. Beth took it and together they walked down the stairs.

* * *

Just like he thought, they didn't get threatened at all. In fact, as Daryl stood beside a restored bike, he was kind of in awe. It had been a long time since he left his bike, and he missed it. Now, Aaron was just handing this one over.

"What's the catch," he asked as he ran a hand over the seat.

"Nothing," Aaron answered. "I found it and fixed it up. I don't like riding them, but I think they're beautiful, so I did it in my spare time, which is a lot lately."

"Ya ain't lookin' for new people as much or somethin'?" Daryl knew the answer, but wanted to hear Aaron say the words out loud.

"Deanna says that it's too dangerous to go outside the fence," he said honestly.

"But not too dangerous for me and Beth to go," Daryl stated.

Aaron sighed heavily. "I know how it seems, and I'm not agreeing with her decision. I don't think anyone should go. You and Beth can take care of yourselves very well, though. That's the only reason she asked—"

"Told," Daryl said. "We weren't asked. We were told."

After clearing his throat, Aaron continued, "If you can find them, and lead a group to take care of the problem, our safe zone will continue to be just that—safe. We need you more than you need us, I guess."

They stood in silence as Daryl looked over the bike. Finally Aaron said, "I'm sorry things went down this way. When we followed your group, Eric and I were so hopeful that you would want to come back here and build this place up. Now, it seems like we've managed to put you in a corner, and I'm very sorry for that. It was never my intention when we saved you."

Daryl shrugged. "Everybody's got an angle. Ya just didn't realize what hers was."

Aaron nodded. "Well, we have spaghetti if you're interested. Eric is a great cook."

"Ain't got nothin' better to do," he mumbled. "Beth'll like it."

Aaron smiled. "Good. We don't really get a lot of company, so I'm happy that you'll stay."

"People are fuckin' stupid," Daryl said and went to the door that led from the garage back into the house.

He heard Aaron's choked laugh from behind him before he said, "Yeah, I think most of them are."

Dinner was great. Beth had a couple of glasses of wine and was tipsy again. She told Aaron and Eric about burning down the moonshine shack and her farm. Eric even got her to sit at the piano in the living room and play a few songs once dinner was over.

He sat on the oversized recliner with another huge glass of wine and listened to her sing. His eyes were closed, and he could feel the corners of his lips twitching up as she started the song she had san in the funeral home.

"You two are beyond precious," Eric said with a smile.

Daryl turned his head to look at him and shrugged. "Got lucky."

"No, it's just the way she's looking at you, and how relaxed you've gotten since she started playing. It's beautiful." He looked at Aaron. "Don't you think that's beautiful?"

Aaron ducked his head and smiled. "Yeah. It's nice to see two people so in love."

Daryl blushed a little and Beth stopped playing and went to sit on his lap. She took a sip of his wine and laid her head against his shoulder. "Ya know, if we make it back from outside the fence, we should do this again. It's nice."

"Absolutely," Eric said with a huge smile. "I love cooking and having company."

Before they walked out of the house that night, Daryl pulled Aaron to the side and said, "If shit goes down here, get yaself out. We plan on meeting at that cabin we found Beth and the others at. From there, we'll figure out where to go next."

Aaron looked at him in complete shock. "You're really offering us a place with you? After what I did with Deanna today?"

Daryl met his eyes for several seconds then nodded. "You're a good person. So's Eric. These people will drag ya down if ya let 'em."

They left Aaron and Eric's house that night, pushing the bike toward their own. Beth smiled and twirled down the street, her dressing floating out around her. She looked like a dream of his, and he wished he could stop time and live in this night forever. The safety, the warmth of the alcohol fueling his actions and thoughts.

He grinned over at her and forgot about what was about to come their way.

And he just enjoyed his little songbird, dancing and humming, occasionally singing as they went back to their home and their room.

* * *

The sun was bright in Merle's eyes as he watched Daryl and Beth drive out of the gate on that new bike. A few minutes later, the van carrying the crew that was going to the electronics warehouse exited, too.

He was posted up against the wall, as a feeling of nervousness settled over him. He looked to the construction crew and saw Abraham pacing. Caught sight of Rick walking down the street to where Jessie's house was, Carol holding Judith and talking with some women down the road a little ways, and Carl playing on a skateboard with some of the boys he had become friends with.

Sasha walked past him toward the gate, and he saw the sniper rifle on her back. He shook his head and followed after her.

Merle remembered what Carol had said the night before, and figured he'd give it his best shot with getting through to her. Or at least make it to where she wasn't going to get herself eaten alive by walkers.

He heard a stick snap to his right and Michonne walked toward him with her sword strapped to her back.

"What're ya doin'?" He asked her once she was right beside him.

"I've been watchin' her," she said quietly. "What're you doin'?"

Merle shrugged. "Just keepin' an eye on her, I guess."

"I don't know why y'all are followin' me," Sasha said once they got further into the woods.

"Someone has to care about your wellbeing since you're not," Michonne said.

"I don't need anyone to help me," Sasha said.

"Your brother'd beat your ass," Merle said.

Sasha turned on him. "You don't know anything about my brother."

"I know enough that he wouldn't have wanted ya to be like this."

She didn't get to say anything else before a group of walkers popped up out of nowhere and started stumbling towards them. They watched as Sasha went crazy, shooting, stabbing, and running into the thick of things.

He took care of a few, and so did Michonne.

It ended with Sasha on her back with a walker over her. Michonne rushed forward and pulled it off before Merle stabbed it through the skull.

"I had it!" Sasha yelled.

"No, you didn't." Michonne looked around at the carnage. "You're hurt, I know. I've been there. Hell, even Merle's been there, but you can't keep doing this. You have to accept what's happened, let it become a part of you, and move on. Bob is here with you, Sasha, and Tara knew the consequences of her actions. She gave her life to save yours. Don't just throw that away."

"I didn't want that sacrifice," she said as tears flooded her eyes. "I don't want people to die for me."

Merle looked away. The emotion in her voice was causing his chest to ache in a familiar way. Almost like the moment he saw Daryl in that ring with him at Woodbury. Shock, grief, and anger all mixed into one big mix of fucked up.

"We need ya," Merle said softly and brought his eyes back to hers. "Ya work that tower, ya keep an eye out. No one has to die for anyone if ya take up the watch."

She looked at him for a second, but as a tear slid down her cheek, she looked away. "I couldn't keep an eye on my own brother, and he was a room away."

"No walls in the tower," Michonne said. "You can see for miles."

Sasha nodded.

In the quiet, Merle glanced around at the walkers, and grunted as he pointed at one. "More 'W's."

Michonne nodded. "Yeah, they're gettin' closer."

"I'll go up in the tower," Sasha said. "We need to be prepared," she whispered and tugged on the sleeve of Bob's medical jacket that she had taken to wearing since the weather turned colder.

"No more trips outside the fences," Merle said and looked between the women. "I gotta feelin' that these bastards would do some sick shit if ya caught one of y'all alive."

He was surprised when Michonne agreed. "I think you're right. Maybe Daryl and Beth will come back with some news soon."

"I just hope they come back," he said and turned to walk back to safe zone.

"They will," Sasha said.

He must have side-eyed her a little too hard because she shrugged and said, "What? Just because I wanna die doesn't mean that I think they will."

"They're a real good team," Michonne said. "I'll admit, when they went public, it was shock, but the more you watch them, the more you see it, you know?"

Merle nodded. "Yeah."

They reached the gate and went their separate ways.

A few hours later, he looked up at the tower and saw Sasha with her gun on the ledge, looking through her scope.

If she could just hold it together a little longer, she could pull through.

"Van's comin'!" She yelled and Merle went for the gate.

He pulled it open and saw Glenn driving, covered in blood. Eugene was in the passenger seat looking into the back.

His hands were shaking as he secured the gate and ran to where they were parked. He threw open the back doors of the van and saw a beat up Noah and Rosita unconscious, bleeding badly from the head.

"Get Bob!" He shouted to some random Alexandria resident that had wandered up. "Someone get Abraham!"

"What the fuck happened?" Merle asked Glenn.

Glenn shook his head and looked like he was in shock. Eugene looked over at him and said, "Aiden and Nicholas are dead."

It didn't take long for word to travel, for Rosita to get taken to the make-shift hospital, for Deanna to lock her doors and mourn, for Noah to lock himself in his room.

Merle sat on the porch steps as everyone inside sat in shock as they listened to Glenn and Eugene explain what happened again and again.

Aiden shooting the grenade, everyone getting blasted back. Eugene saving Rosita. Nicholas trying to push the revolving glass door so that Glenn and Noah got pushed into the group of walkers. Walkers grabbing Noah's leg, but Glenn pulling him back then both of them ramming the door forward, pushing Nicholas back into the herd.

"It was him or Noah," Glenn said quietly. "And I just couldn't let that happen."

Merle looked toward the gate and worried more for Beth and Daryl than he ever had before.

* * *

"Look, Daryl!" She whispered yelled and pointed through the chain link fence. "It's food trucks."

"Looks like a fuckin' trap to me," he muttered.

"C'mon there might be some canned food we can take. We're runnin' low."

"Weren't ya the one that was all against Glenn and them goin' to that warehouse 'cause of the walkers that coulda been in there, and now you're tryin' to get my ass to go into a shippin' yard?" He asked and looked around the parking lot. "It's been three days. It's prolly time to start headin' back that way."

Beth sighed. "There are no walkers to be seen, Mr. Dixon. It's just us and an empty, locked up, fenced in yard. C'mon," she pleaded and pulled his hand toward the fence.

Daryl groaned but followed after her. This trip had been a waste of time anyway. What was one more side trip?

They hadn't found any traces of the Wolves anywhere. It was like they were a group of ghosts. They would find walkers and dead people with their signature on their forehead, but they hadn't actually seen any humans to connect them to.

Daryl didn't like that. It meant they could track and cover their tracks in return. A group of men like him and Merle that had gone way south.

Just that morning they had found a campsite that had been attacked. The men had been bludgeoned to death, but the woman had been tied to a tree and been gutted. No tracks leading anywhere after, no sign of anyone other than the people at the camp. It had just happened in the early hours of the morning, but they had vanished into thin air.

Beth slipped through the small space between the gates, and Daryl pulled them as far apart as they would go and squeezed through, too. He smiled when she smiled then shook his head. There was no telling what he would do for her if she asked him.

Once they were up on the loading dock, Beth and him walked down the row of trailers. They were all shut and locked, and it seemed like no one had been there in a very long time. It was almost untouched which to him threw up red flags since this place should have been one of the first to get picked over.

"This looks really nice," Beth said as she kneeled next to the lock of one of the trailers.

"Don't open that," Daryl said. He walked closer and knocked against the door. Beth stood up and listened, too.

When the first walker slammed against the inside of the trailer, Beth jumped back, and covered her mouth with her hand.

"What the hell?" She asked.

Daryl had no time to answer because all the trailer doors seemed to rise up at once and walkers with carved foreheads spilled out onto the loading dock.

"Run!" Daryl yelled. He fired a bolt into the closest walker and ran after Beth. The walkers came from all angles, though, and soon, they were boxed in.

Daryl slid under one of the trailers and Beth followed him. He found a stray chain and wrapped a good portion of it around his hand, leaving a bit off the end.

"We gotta get outta here," he said, his voice a little shaky. "When we come out, ya run for the fence, okay?"

"I've got your back, Daryl," she argued.

He just shook his head, and they moved for the other side at the same time. Three walkers came at him from the front and he slung the rope as hard as he could, slicing their heads in half. He heard Beth fighting behind him and turned to see her stabbing a walker in the head while holding off another with her hand pressed into its chest.

She took care of the second one right as he got to her. "We gotta fuckin' go," he yelled and pulled her along. He didn't bother to kill the walkers anyway, only pushed them away as he took off for the gate.

More walkers came from the front and he wondered just what kind of trap had been set that so many walkers were there. He turned and ran to the abandoned car in the middle of the lot and opened the door, pushing Beth inside then jumping in behind her and slamming the door right as walkers hit the vehicle.

"Fuck," he groaned and slammed his head against the passenger seat. "Now we know where they're keepin' their walkers.

The only noise filling the inside of the car was their heavy breathing, but it could barely be heard over the snarling of walkers. Daryl sighed and looked over at Beth, who was staring at a piece of paper in her hand.

She gave it to Daryl and he read the words that were scribbled along the paper.

_Get out. It's a trap._

"No, shit," he muttered and tossed it to the floorboard. "I'm gonna push open this door, and I'm gonna draw 'em off. Ya run and get out that gate, and I'll meet ya when I'm done."

"Not a chance," she said and shook her head.

"Arrow, I'm about to push open this door, and I'm runnin'. I don't plan on dyin' today, and I don't plan on us gettin' caught by these bastards. Ya better run when I do."

She was about to say something else when a walker smashed into the glass, but his head had been busted open. One-by-one the walkers were dropping then his door was pulled open.

An older black man with a staff looked frantically at both of them. "Hurry! We gotta run!"

Daryl jumped out of the car followed by Beth, and they all ran for the fence, squeezing through just in time for the leftover walkers to meet the gate.

They were bent over, hands on their knees, gasping for air.

"Y'all didn't get bit, did ya?" He asked them and stood up, leaning on his staff.

"Nah," Daryl said with a shake of his head.

"No," Beth breathed out.

"Good, good." The man looked around. "Y'all have a camp around here? I'm tryin' to get to D.C., but I haven't been runnin' into many decent people lately."

Daryl stood up and nodded. "Yeah, there's a place. Where ya from?"

He smiled. "I'm from King County, Georgia."

"Really?" Beth said with a sigh. "I grew up in Senoia. My daddy was—_is_—Hershel Greene."

"He was a vet," the man said with a sad smile. "I'm sorry to hear that he's passed."

"Yeah." Beth looked away, and Daryl knew she was trying to keep it together.

"What's your name?" Daryl asked, shifting his crossbow around.

"Morgan," he said. "Morgan Jones."

Daryl scoffed. "Ya gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me."

"No, I kid you not."

"Well, Morgan Jones. I'm Daryl Dixon, and this is Beth Greene, and you're lookin' for Alexandria. D.C.'s a bust."

He looked visible defeated at hearing that. "I figured that would be the place to start over."

"So did we," Beth said with a shrug. "But we have a good place."

"Yeah," Daryl snorted. "And old friends, too."

* * *

Their little world had collapsed in all of seventy-two hours.

Earlier in the day, Merle watched from a few feet away as Rick completely lost his shit, beaten the hell out of Pete then yelled at Deanna and everyone else. The pure crazed look in his eyes made Merle scared.

Right there was a man with nothing to lose, or at least in his mind, because there was no one in this world that could beat him. His ego was on full display, and maybe it was that overconfidence that caused him to think he could go after Jessie in the first place or try and set the rules in a place where he had no established base.

Michonne knocked his ass out, though, and Merle had ended up carrying him to their house.

Now, Carol was around saying that a meeting would be held that night about his fate. Merle shook his head, and watched as Rick sat on his pallet and raised his hands at his sides. "I screwed up," he said like it wasn't a big deal. "I'll go there, and I'll listen to what they say, but if things don't go our way, we just slit their throats."

"Good Jesus Christ," Merle muttered. "Do y'all even hear yaselves? Y'all know somethin's wrong when my ass is tellin' ya that y'all are wrong."

"Then you can stay here and watch the kids," said Carol.

Merle wanted to wring her neck, but instead, he turned around and walked away.

He wasn't like her husband. He wouldn't put his hands on her. He wouldn't force her into anything. He wasn't going to be someone she could take swipes at either.

He went upstairs and picked up all his clothes and threw them in a bag, grabbed his knife, then went downstairs.

"Where are you goin'?" She asked as he passed through the kitchen.

"Not here no more," he said. "I get that ya got your issues, and I've changed enough to respect that shit. But I've been on the ground floor of creatin' a dictatorship. I watched the Governor build up Woodbury from by his fuckin' side, and I can't watch it happen again. This controllin' bullshit ain't gonna work. Hershel Greene is turnin' in his grave over all this."

"Hershel never got a grave," Rick said from the other room. "We were too relaxed then. We let lots of people die 'cause we still thought we could come back. We can't, Merle. We can't go back."

Merle shook his head.

Carol sighed. "Nothin' will happen as long as they don't try and kick Rick or Glenn out. Noah has been with Reg since we got here, and he's vouched for Noah. He's safe, and he's actually learnin' the stuff we need to keep this place runnin'. They think Glenn killed Nicholas and Aiden 'cause he didn't like them, and even Maggie can't change Deanna's mind."

He was frustrated as hell, and he couldn't say anything about Glenn or Noah. Both of them hadn't done a damn thing wrong, but the man they called their leader was making one bad call after another. "Maybe Rick should stop actin' like a fuckin' kid, and we wouldn't be in this position right now," Merle said as Rick stepped into the room.

"Just get it out, Merle. Let me have all your expert opinions," Rick snarked and leaned against the wall. His face was covered in little bandages from where him and Pete went through a window together earlier.

"Leave that bitch alone. She's married. Ya got her separated from her husband. Leave it at that, and now let him fuck everythin' up, but stop actin' like ya can't control your damn dick."

Rick snorted and looked down at his boots.

"Pete will ruin it, Rick," Carol said. "I pretty much made sure of that."

"What's that mean?" Merle asked and they both looked at her.

"I went to his new house and gave him some encouragement when it came to leavin' Jessie alone."

"Christ," Merle muttered. He walked to the door, but Rick's voice stopped him short.

"Ya gonna be at the meetin'? Ya gonna stand with us?"

"Yeah, I'll be there," he said after a few seconds of silence.

Merle walked down the steps and went to the house next door. The meeting was happening at dark in Deanna's backyard, and he had about an hour before it all started. He skirted the porch and went around to the side of the house and leaned against it, banging his head a couple of times.

Since the prison fell, they had lost two people, and they were damned good people with good hearts. If he kept on the path he was on, he would end up in the ground with them if the pattern continued.

Somewhere along the way, he had developed a conscience instead of losing it.


	25. Chapter 25

Ch. 25

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* * *

Since they only had the bike, they had to look around for a car so that Morgan could follow them back to Alexandria. It took a little while for them to find one with enough gas to make it the whole trip, so it was getting dark when they got to the gate. They waited a couple of minutes for someone to let them in, but when no one did, Daryl and Beth got off the bike and looked around.

The gate was locked, and after a few unsuccessful attempts at reaching through the small hole to the other side, Daryl helped Beth over, and she opened it for them.

"Where the hell's everyone at?" Daryl asked as he pushed the bike inside the walls and Morgan pulled in behind him.

Beth didn't have time to answer before Morgan asked, "This is it?"

Daryl didn't fault him for the disbelief in his voice. It looked pretty shitty from his point-of-view, too, and he had actually lived here a few weeks.

"Usually someone's at the gate," Beth answered. "This isn't normal."

He pulled the gate to and locked it before they continued walking down the street. Finally Maggie came speed walking down the sidewalk toward them. Her eyes scanned both of them before looking at Morgan.

"Good. Y'all are here for the meetin'."

"What meetin'?" Beth asked.

Maggie explained quickly what had happened that morning, and how people were calling for Rick to be banished. Then gave them the story about what happened the day they had left with Glenn's group, and how they were thinking of banishing him, too.

"I just left Carl and Judith. He's pissed he doesn't get to come, but Rick doesn't want him there."

"I'll stay with him and make sure he doesn't leave," Beth said then reached out and grabbed Maggie's hand. "You represent me and Daddy, okay."

Maggie nodded silently before she turned and took off for Deanna's.

"I'll take Morgan to the meetin' and maybe him and me can help Rick," Daryl said to Beth.

"We could use somethin' good happenin' for once," she said with a smile. "I'm sure it'll be okay."

He wasn't convinced she was right, but still they all went their separate ways as quickly as they could. Daryl sighed and clenched his hands around his bow strap. There was no telling what he was walking into.

* * *

Beth walked into the house and heard Carl playing with Judith in the living room. The last thing she wanted was to make him worry over who it was so she called out his name and he hollered back, "In here!"

"Hey there," she said. "A little birdie told me you and Miss Juju were gettin' left out of tonight's festivities."

"And they sent ya here to babysit," Carl said with a sigh.

"No, I'm not your babysitter. I'm your friend, and I'm here to keep ya company until it's all said and done."

"Whatever," Carl said and looked at the fireplace. Michonne's katana hung over the mantle, and Beth wished the woman would put it back on. Hanging up like that, it made the sword seem like a relic from the past, but Beth was all too aware of how death and destruction weren't the past at all. This was another thing that bothered her about the safe zone and how their group had changed in the last couple of weeks.

Beth understood the desire for normal, but that's all it was now—a desire, a want. Normal would never happen again.

She glanced away, trying to push that thought deep down in her head, then put the gun Daryl gave her on the end table. It had been digging into her back all day, and the instant relief was a godsend.

After a couple of minutes of strained silence, Carl stood and picked up Judith. "I'm gonna get her some dinner," he said and went into the kitchen that was attached to the dining room.

"Get yourself somethin', too," she said as he walked past. "Ya need to eat."

He made a noise in the back of his throat but didn't argue.

It hadn't been more than five minutes later when she heard the front door open. She turned around expecting Daryl to come in from the hallway, but came face-to-face with a very drunk, very angry Pete.

* * *

They came into the circle right as Rick was yelling about the changes they would have to make to keep them safe. Someone had left the gate open and three walkers had gotten in and no one even noticed. They had to change, and they would be changing now or else.

"Are you threatening us, Rick? You realize why we've gathered here. You're not helping your case."

Morgan stepped out of the shadows and asked, "Rick?"

He snapped his head around and looked at him in surprise. "Morgan?"

"Looks like we mighta switched places since the last time I saw ya," he said with a laugh.

Rick let out a choked laugh of his own and looked away. "Been through a lot since then."

"Me too," Morgan said. "Maybe we can talk for a bit once you're done here?"

Rick nodded and everyone just stared in question at the man who had seemed to calm Rick down so suddenly.

"Who the fuck's Morgan?" Abraham asked loudly, ending the quiet moment altogether.

* * *

"It's all your fault," Pete said as he stepped into the room.

Beth turned to the side and shook her head discreetly at Carl. He had started to walk toward her, but he didn't have any weapons. There was nothing at all he could do to help her. If she was in Pete's sights, she would gladly take it over it being them.

"Whose fault?" She asked calmly, moving in front of the kitchen door.

"That fuckin' hunter's. Then Rick's."

"Daryl's never done anythin' to ya," she reasoned as she took another step back and motioned for Carl to leave.

Carl caught her stare briefly, and she knew that he was fighting ever instinct he had not to run in there and try and defend her and his dad. Beth pointed her finger unnoticeably from behind her back, and he finally started to back away slowly. Her attention focused solely on Pete as soon as she heard the door click shut. Carl would run to the meeting and get help. All she had to do was keep Pete talking for a few minutes.

Pete's eyes were on Michonne's sword as he said, "They took her away from me. If he hadn't shown up here, we would've never known about y'all's group. And then y'all would've never came, and I'd still be in my house!" He was yelling, and he reached out for the sword as Beth moved for her gun. "I'll just take somethin' of theirs," he said and turned toward her, the sword at his hip.

She realized too late that he hadn't meant just taking the sword, and he swung up the same time as she grabbed the gun. Beth turned her body to the side and fell back, but still felt the sting of the blade from her hip across her torso and clipping her left cheek.

She stumbled, trying to keep her balance, but tripped over her own feet and smashed her temple against the end table. Blood ran down her face, and she blinked several times, trying to stay awake, but blackness closed in.

* * *

With Morgan's arrival, the meeting separated into smaller groups as Rick talked to him and Deanna. Merle walked over to his brother and asked, "Where's Beth?"

"Went to be with Carl so he'd stay in the house."

At that moment, Carl came running into the circle with Judith, hollering. "Pete's at our house!"

Everyone looked around, wondering what that could mean, but Daryl seemed to know, same as Merle, and turned to run. He saw the shadowy figure moving toward the gate and grabbed Daryl and pulled him back. A few seconds later, Pete entered the backyard. His eyes were wide and mean.

"You're not one of us," Pete said as he walked toward Rick.

Merle looked to the sword at his side and noticed the blood streaking it, so did Daryl. Once Pete walked past him, yelling at Rick and Deanna, Daryl took off for the house.

Merle started to run after him as Reg stepped forward, trying to calm Pete down.

"Pete, you don't want to do this," he said and held up his hands.

"Get the hell away from me," Pete said and looked past him toward Rick.

Reg stepped in between them, and tried to grab the sword from Pete's hands. "Pete, just stop."

"Get away from me," Pete yelled again and tried to push him away.

Merle took a step toward them and watched for the right moment to jump in. Pete was lethal right now, and the blood on the sword might have already meant he'd killed someone.

"Reg," Deanna whispered panicked, seeing her husband struggle with a crazy, drunk man.

It all happened so quickly after that, Reg tried again to reason with him, but Pete pushed him away and pulled the sword up in one stroke, the blade slicing across Reg's throat. Deanna fell to the ground, holding him on her lap, sobbing.

Abraham was on Pete in an instant, holding him down as Glenn kicked away the sword.

Reg sputtered for breath, but it was obvious he was on his way out. As the last gurgle died, and he closed his eyes, Deanna looked over at Pete, who was still struggling on the ground. Rick's gun was aimed at his head.

"It's him!" Pete yelled, looking at Rick. "This is on him!"

"Do it, Rick," she said, causing Rick to meet her gaze. When he didn't act right away, she spoke again, more confident and angrier. "Do it now."

The sound of Rick's gun filled the air, and Merle ran for the house with a few others following him.

* * *

The air rushed from his lungs as Daryl busted into the house. It was so quiet, and he hadn't seen any sign of her on the way there, so chances were, she was still in the house. Whether she was safe was a whole other question entirely.

"Beth!" He yelled. His heart feeling like it was going to pound out of his chest.

Inside the living room, he caught sight of Beth's legs peeking from around the couch. "Beth?" He asked softly. "Arrow?" He asked again as he rounded the sofa.

There was blood everywhere, soaking her shirt and running down her face and neck. He couldn't even make out where the wound was or if it was a continuous slash.

"Help!" He screamed. "Help me!"

His hands were on her shirt searching for the source, and almost immediately, Bob was there, replacing him.

"I'll take care of this," he said in that even tone of his.

He sat back on his heels and watched in a daze as Bob separated her ripped shirt, and he saw the deep gash that stretched from her hipbone all the way up and across one breast and up to her cheek.

"If you're not part of our group, get out!" Carol yelled.

He had never heard her speak so full of outrage and anger before and that was saying something. Daryl also wasn't aware that anyone else had come into the room at all until that moment. His eyes were fixed on the blood running from Beth's body, soaking the off-white carpet below her.

"We need to move her," Bob said. "There's too much blood. I need to try and stem the flow, but I've got nothin' here that's sanitary."

"Excuse me," a woman said and shifted to sit on her knees beside Bob. "I'm a nurse. I can help."

Daryl started to move her out of the way. He didn't trust her, and he'd never heard anyone mention a nurse before.

"You weren't at the clinic," Bob said and began looking around the room. "We need a—"

"A stretcher," the woman said and pointed behind her to the orange board. "And you can imagine why I asked to be reassigned from the clinic."

Daryl stared her down then nodded. It didn't surprise him that she didn't want to work with Pete.

"If you could just help me move her," she said, looking to Daryl.

"Yeah, okay," Daryl said and slipped his arm under Beth's shoulders and one under her knees.

Once she was laid back on the board with a blanket covering her body, Abraham and Rick got on either side of the board and picked it up with ease. She weighed nothing. Daryl knew that. He followed behind them in a numb daze. His shirt was so soaked with blood from that one moment of holding her close that with every movement it would stick and pull at his skin.


	26. Chapter 26

Ch. 26

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* * *

Daryl sat beside her bed, watching her as she slept. That's what Bob had called it, anyway. He thought it was bullshit. Beth had taken a pretty decent hit to the head on the way down, and he knew she had a concussion on top of all that blood loss.

It had taken hours to stitch her up, and the scar would be brutal after it had all healed. She got lucky despite everything, though. Bob guess that she had started to pull away before Pete made contact because the wound wasn't terribly deep.

Daryl imagined the scar years from now, a thick line marring her skin. His own scars crisscrossed his back never fully allowing him to forget what had happened when he was a boy. That one of hers, like his, she could cover up, though. The two scars on her face would always be a visible reminder of what happened.

In the bed beside hers, Rosita still lay unconscious. Abraham sat beside her, facing toward Daryl. They didn't speak. Eugene had been in earlier, and despite Daryl's presence, made a sincere apology about leading him on a wild goose chase.

It was exhausting. Everything was bearing down on him at once, and it was almost like he couldn't even get a good breath. He closed his eyes for a moment then laid his head down on the edge of Beth's bed. He was drained completely, and before he could try and stop himself, he fell asleep holding her hand.

* * *

Merle sat on the porch steps, ignoring the crying coming from down the road. Jessie wasn't taking Pete's death like one would imagine, but not many abused women felt freedom as soon as their abuser was gone.

It didn't matter who had called the shot, all that seemed to matter was that Rick pulled the trigger.

Politicians were all the same. They wanted the glory and the power, but they didn't want to do the dirty work. They let other people do that. Hell, it was why they were even in the safe zone to begin with.

Once her crying had stopped or maybe she had just went inside, Merle shifted a little to look behind him. He thought about Beth. She had been messed up bad, and after he broke out of his shock at seeing her nearly gutted, they had already carried her out of the house.

She had been there and made sure that Carl and Judith had run. She stayed behind because she knew Pete would have followed her. His strides would have eaten hers up and to get him one-on-one would have been suicide. He was too strong for her.

Merle could picture her reaching for the gun, then trying to lean out of the way as the sword sliced up her torso.

He knew pain. He knew fear. And he didn't like the idea of her being so familiar with those two things. Sure, she had felt them when the prison fell, but it was different when it was your own blood spilling. He wondered if she was conscious for long, and if she prayed that they would find her before she turned.

"She's gonna be fine," Carol said as she sat beside him. Merle nodded and kept his eyes on the step below him. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I realize that you probably hold me at fault here. For pushin' things. For gettin' Pete to this point."

"Truth be told, I hadn't even thought about how ya fucked up this situation yet," he said and glanced up at her. "Now that ya mention it, though, yeah, ya knew that bastard was unstable, and ya pushed lookin' for a reaction. Ya fuckin' got it."

Carol nodded and stared straight forward. "She'll live, and we control this safe zone."

"That's really all ya got to say?"

"It's not like apologizin' will help. She was in the right place at the right time."

"What?" He asked incredulously and leaned away from her.

"I pushed. I know it," she said quietly. "If she hadn't been there, though, Carl and Judith would be dead."

Instead of speaking, Merle sighed and shook his head. They stayed like that for a long while before Carol started to stand up. "I'm not good anymore. I'll always look for the angle, the little move that will keep us alive longer."

"You can be strategic, but ya don't gotta be heartless. Pretendin' you're not hurtin' over Beth ain't puttin' on a brave face, it's foolin' yourself."

Carol looked away. After a couple of minutes of silence, she asked, "Will you come back to our room?"

"Do ya want me to or do ya wanna keep up appearences?" He asked, completely shocked by her question.

"I want you there," she whispered.

"What's your angle?" His voice was harsher than he remembered it being in a while, but when it came to Carol, she was something that could hurt him, regularly, and it felt right sometimes to cause hurt back.

"I like bein' with you," she admitted. "I—" she trailed off and shook her head.

"What?"

"You're the only person that makes me feel a little safe. And I'm sorry, Merle. I'm sorry that I push and pull you. I don't know what to do with us because I'm terrified that one of us is gonna die."

It might have been the wrong move, and he knew she would run cold again, and he'd end up frustrated and angry, but he said, "I'll bring my shit back."

Her shoulders seemed to sag in relief, and she took a step back. "I told Rick I'd check on the kids. I'll be home after that."

"I'll be around," he said.

He wished he had a cigarette, something to calm his nerves a little. He wondered again if things between them would ever be easy or if it would always be an uphill battle.

Deep down, he knew that they would never have a normal relationship, but it wasn't enough to make him give up altogether.

* * *

She groaned as a stinging pain sliced up her body.

"Beth?" Daryl's voice was rough and right by her ear.

She tried to open her eyes but they felt glued shut, and the burning across her stomach and chest intensified with each breath. Beth swallowed and opened her mouth, but the only noise that came out was a pained moaned.

"Somebody get Bob," Daryl said but his voice was further away.

"Ya gotta stay awake. It's important to stay awake now."

"It hurts, Daryl." She managed to get that out but paid for it with every move of her tongue or little breath she took. Her head was throbbing and her face felt swollen. The inside of her cheek was tender when her tongue brushed over it.

Daryl's mouth was right beside her ear, and she wondered if he was hiding his face from someone else or maybe just his words because his voice was barely above a whisper.

"Beth, baby, ya gotta hold on. Bob'll give ya somethin' for the pain, I promise. Ya hit your head pretty good. Ya've been out a whole day."

Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes with her next breath, and that seemed to back him even more frantic.

"I'm sorry," he said and turned his face into her hair. "I'm so fuckin' sorry."

"Hey! She's awake!" Bob's voice was too happy for her brain to appreciate at that moment.

"Can't ya get her somethin' stronger? She's got a fuck ton of stitches, and ya gave her some supped up expired Tylenol."

"I'll get her the good stuff," Bob said. "I didn't want to drug her further, though. I know it hurts, Beth, but you woke up faster because I didn't give the strong stuff. I was worried about your head wound. I have no way of getting images to know if there was any severe damage."

Beth peeled one eye open and blinked at the bright lights. She was in the house they had turned into a clinic. Bob's face entered her line of sight.

"There's those beautiful blue eyes," he said with a smile. "I'm gonna put something in your I.V. It's gonna make you loopy, and it might even make you sleep some more, okay?"

"Yeah," she said. "Water?" She asked. Before she had even finished saying the word, Daryl was holding up a little cup with a straw. She coughed and choked on the first sip. Her cheek stinging with each pull from the straw and her chest aching from the swallow.

"What's wrong with me?" She asked after he took the water away.

The meds that Bob had pushed into her I.V. made the room spin and the ache muted just a little.

"Ya don't remember?" Daryl asked.

She shook her head. "I remember Morgan and gettin' him back here, but that's it."

Beth turned her head to the side to face him and saw his face scrunch up. "Pete," he said and looked down.

It came back then. Carl and Judith getting out through the back door. Trying to grab the gun. Michonne's katana cutting her open with such ease.

"What happened after?"

"Guess he thought ya were dead. He came to the meetin', and Reg tried to stop him, but Pete ended up killin' him then Rick killed Pete."

"And I'm here," she said and closed her eyes.

Daryl leaned in close again, and she wondered who else was in the room. Maggie wasn't. If she was, she would have been all over her.

"I thought ya were dead," he said against her cheek. "There was so much blood, and ya weren't movin'."

"Bob said I'll be fine," she assured him even though her body felt the exact opposite.

"Yeah, well, ya didn't look like you were gonna be fine when I got there."

Daryl sat back in his chair and took her hand again. Her head felt foggy, and she thought it was a little like being drunk. Beth closed her eyes and took a few shallow breaths to calm her stomach.

"How bad?" She asked quietly.

His lips touched her hand before he said. "Sliced ya from your hip across your torso. Got a gash on your cheek and forehead."

The pain in her face made a lot more sense now. "My beauty pageant days are over?" She snorted at her own little joke then opened her eyes. Daryl was staring at her, his eyes wide and scared. She wanted to reach out and touch him, but he had her hand, plus her body was starting to feel really heavy along with her eyes. "Hey, it's okay," she said. "I'm right here."

He didn't respond right away, or maybe she just didn't hear him.

* * *

Her eyes closed and her hand fell slack in his.

She was breathing. He could see that, but he started to lose his shit a little.

He hollered for Bob, and he came running from a back room. "What's wrong?"

"She's knocked out," he said in a slightly too high-pitched voice.

Bob sighed. "She's fine. The meds along with what happened to her body have made her exhausted. She's just asleep. Next time, I'll lessen the dose, so she stays awake longer. This is her body's way of healing, Daryl."

Daryl swallowed hard and looked away. He finally nodded, but didn't met Bob's eyes again. He didn't want her asleep. He wanted her awake and walking around and completely fine, but that was a long way from possible.

After Bob seemed think that Daryl was calm enough, he went to Rosita's bedside and checked the bandage on her head. Abraham spoke to him in low tones, but Daryl didn't strain to hear. That was private. It was why he whispered to her.

She had been asleep about fifteen minutes before Maggie came through the door. She had been checking on Beth every couple of hours or so while trying to do damage control all over the safe zone.

Deanna might have used Rick to kill Pete, but people were still suspicious of them. Especially with what happened on Glenn's run a few days earlier and then with what happened at the meeting.

"Has she woken up yet?"

Daryl nodded. "Only for a few minutes, though. Bob gave her somethin' for the pain, and she fell back asleep."

"That's good," Maggie said and pulled up a chair to the other side of Beth's bed. "She needs to rest as much as she can. Maybe when she wakes up for good, it won't hurt so much."

"It's gonna hurt for a long time. She ain't gonna be able to get out of the walls for months. Can ya imagine her tryin' to run from a herd or gettin' walker blood in a healin' wound?"

Maggie nodded and shot him a soft smile. "It'll be fine for y'all to stay inside for a while." She looked behind her to Rosita and asked, "How's she?"

"Still out," Abraham said as he leaned back in his chair. He crossed his arms over his chest and sighed. "Longer she's out, the less likely it is she'll wake up. She's already losin' weight. Can only pour so much broth down her throat, ya know?"

"I'm so sorry," she whispered and looked away.

Abraham made a noise but didn't say anything else. After that, they sat in silence for a good long while before Maggie stood up and kissed her sister's forehead. "I'll be back, Bethy."

A few hours later, Daryl was standing in the kitchen warming up more broth for both Beth and Rosita when he heard Abraham yell for Bob.

Daryl turned off the burner and ran into the front room that had been made into the hospital room. Rosita's eyes were open, and she was looking around. She hadn't spoke yet, at least not that Daryl had heard, but when Bob flashed the light in her eyes, she groaned. "That hurts."

"You're eyes will be sensitive for a little while. You've had them closed for days," Bob said like it was completely normal.

Daryl went back into the kitchen to finish with their dinner, and let out a relieved breath. This was good. They needed to catch a little break.

* * *

"Ya should let Jessie cut your hair," Beth whispered late that night.

She was in pain, he could tell by her facial expression, but she was awake and that was good news. She had eaten which was even better. The pain medicine Bob had given her was starting to kick in again, though, and she was smiling at him like she had that night at the moonshine shack.

"That woman ain't touchin' my hair."

"I could try," she said with a grin.

"Why ya want my hair short?"

She closed her eyes, and he thought she was going to fall asleep, but she said, "I like your eyes."

He grunted and squeezed her hand.

"Ya should really go home, Daryl. Get a good night's rest. I'm fine here."

"Nah." He shook his head. "I'm good."

She smiled a little. "You're so stubborn."

"So are you," he said back to her.

"Daddy always said that about me and Maggie." Beth hummed quietly. "I miss him. I think he would've been good here. Tyreese, too. They were such good people."

"They were," he agreed.

"Tara was nice, too."

"She was." He didn't know much more about her than she was nice, sometimes a little sarcastic, but he had liked it.

He waited for her to say something else, but realized pretty quickly that she had gone back to sleep, and he was alone with his thoughts. It wasn't always a good place to be, especially the last few days.

Daryl knew that things were bad, and that they had the threat of the Wolves hanging over their heads, but for a little while he was going to be relieved.

Rosita was awake and seemed to be okay.

Beth was going to be fine. They had been giving her antibiotics through her I.V. and her wound wasn't red and irritated. She hadn't ran a fever, and she'd been able to keep down her food.

She just needed some time to heal, and he would do whatever he could to make sure it was safe for her while she got better.

Daryl stood up and went to the recliner along the wall in front of her bed, and kicked it back. He could use a bit of sleep if he was going to be useful to anyone come morning.


	27. Chapter 27

Ch. 27

Thanks for reading.

* * *

Maggie walked into the clinic and shut the door behind her before locking it. "There's been some things pop up since last night that I think y'all should know."

It had been a week since Beth had been hurt, and Rosita had gotten to go back to their house a couple of days earlier, so now him and Beth were the only ones in house most of the time. Sasha and Bob slept on the second floor during the night, just in case she needed something, but usually it was just them. He took care of her wounds and helped her to the bathroom and other everyday tasks.

Beth hated it, and if it was something that truly embarrassed her, he would have to go get Margot to help. She didn't like anyone but him changing her bandages, though. The first time she had seen the line of stitches up her body, she had gasped and watched in shock as he cleaned them and rewrapped everything.

"I should prolly be dead," she said.

"But ya ain't," he had answered back.

That was the last they had talked about them.

"What's going on?" Beth asked as she tried to scoot around and get comfortable. The stitches would pull if she moved the wrong way, and she would flinch all the time.

"There were about twenty walkers along the wall. All had 'W's in their foreheads. Sasha took 'em out from the tower, but about an hour ago, ten more showed up."

"Ya think they're sendin' 'em?" Daryl asked and looked to the door.

"I don't know," she said. "Merle went out with Michonne to look around, but they didn't find anythin'.

"When we were out there lookin' for 'em, we couldn't ever follow their tracks. They were like ghosts," Beth said quietly.

They all went silent for a few seconds before he asked, "These new walkers at the same spot as the old ones?"

"Basically. It's along the western wall."

"Who's in charge of defense?"

"Rick and Abraham mostly." Maggie said. "Merle's been workin' with a group to reinforce the walls. Since Noah had been workin' with Reg, he knows a little bit about them, so he's helpin' him. They've got some welding equipment, and there's a guy who's making parts of the wall stronger."

"We'll need to get together and figure somethin' out," Daryl said. He was chewing on the inside of his cheek and wondering what could be next. None of the scenarios were good ones, though.

Maggie nodded. "I'm gonna try and talk to Deanna. She's on the fence about all of us now, but she needs to give Rick and Abraham free reign when it comes to what happens inside these walls until we deal with the threat."

"She ain't go no choice," Daryl muttered and scrubbed a hand over his face. He knew this had been coming, but he had pushed it away, hoping that Beth would be better before they needed to fight or run. It didn't look like he was going to get that, though.

Maggie leaned down and hugged Beth then whispered something into her ear before the left the house.

Once the door clicked shut behind her, they looked over at each other for a moment before looking down at their hands. If the Wolves came, he would need to be up front, defending the walls and trying to keep them from getting inside. Beth would be here with Bob and Margot, and while Bob knew how to fight, and Beth could have a gun at her side, it wasn't enough.

He needed to make sure someone was inside this house with her, someone that wouldn't hesitate to defend their family but didn't need to be in the big fight at all. Daryl sat there for a few more minutes thinking over his options before he kissed Beth's cheek. "I'll be back later."

"Okay." She leaned her head back against her pillow. "I really hate not bein' able to do anythin'."

"I know," he said and stood up. "You'll be back on your feet before too long."

He found Bob and Margot in the back, trying to catalogue their supplies. Pete's system was shit, but that was probably because he put stuff away or threw it down when he was wasted.

"I'm gonna take off for a little while. Want ya to lock the door behind me."

Bob nodded and walked behind him. "Is there a problem?" Bob asked once they were in the hall.

"Not yet, but just some stuff don't seem right with the walkers gatherin' like they've been doin'. I'ma send Carl and Judith down this way, too."

"I can help, Daryl," Bob said quietly.

"Yeah, but you're needed more here now," he said and pointed to Beth who had her eyes closed again. He knew she wasn't asleep, though.

"Okay," he said. "Will you look out for Sasha? She's been havin' trouble."

"Yeah. Listen for Carl to knock soon."

He took off from the clinic and was down the steps to the house everyone else was sharing.

* * *

Merle stood in the kitchen and watched as Daryl talked with Carl.

The kid didn't want to be left out of a fight, but the more Daryl spoke, the more puffed up Carl seemed to become. He was a good boy, and he'd grow up to be a good man, but he was still a teenager who was looking to prove something.

His baby brother played that like a fiddle, too.

"I'm askin' ya to go there, to protect her for me. Beth can't get up outta bed on her own. How's she gonna fight if someone gets in there? Bob and Margot need to worry about keepin' her alive and takin' care of her and Judith. You need to be there to kill anythin' that tries to get in."

"Did ya talk to my dad?" He asked and picked at the table.

"No, but it don't matter. We all got jobs to do right? This one's yours."

With the knowledge that Daryl hadn't met up with his old man to clear it with him, Carl seemed to take on a whole new attitude.

"Yeah, I'll take Judith, and we'll go there now. I'll bring Enid with me, so she can help with her."

Daryl just nodded and Carl took off toward the kitchen door, but Daryl stopped him. "Take this," he said and held out a pistol. It had been the one beside Beth on the floor, and Merle knew that Carol had given it to him. "I'll bring ya somethin' else after I get into the armory. Don't forget your knife."

"Got it," Carl said and took off to find Judith.

Once they were alone, he looked at Merle. "Ya think I should let him take that girl around with him?"

Merle shrugged. "She's harmless. Beth said that they sneak out sometimes."

Ignoring what he said about Carl, Daryl asked, "Any more new walkers?"

"Got about ten more wanderin' up. Sasha's in the tower, but Abraham told her not to shoot. He thinks that they're watchin' us, which they prolly are, and are tryin' to figure out where our people are positioned."

"We need to clear those walkers," Daryl said and laid his hands on the counter. "They're gonna pile 'em up on us and breach the damn wall."

"Don't know about that," Merle said and sighed. "The wall's pretty strong, but we don't need 'em attractin' more."

"How do we do it? Do we wanna risk openin' that gate and goin' out?"

Merle shrugged and shook his head. It could have been the opening that the Wolves were looking for, but the other option would be picking them off from the top of the wall, and that just sounded like a pain in the ass to him.

It wasn't up to him, though, and before he knew it, he was in a group meeting with Abraham and Rick, along with Carol, Eugene, Michonne, Noah, Glenn, and Daryl.

Eugene said they needed to go over the top to kill the walkers while others continued to reinforce the gate. "There was no reason to go out right now," he said matter-of-factly. "We have plenty of food and water to last if they attack. There's one thing we really need to worry about, and that's the gate. Stop whatever reinforcing you're doing along the western wall, and move all of it to the gate. That's where they'll try and come in at. I would imagine by using a car as a battering ram."

Abraham took several deeps breaths before he looked to Rick, who nodded. Finally, Abraham directed Noah and Glenn to gather up the construction crew to make the changes to the wall.

"I can make some bombs," Eugene offered.

The group looked at him like he was crazy, and Rick cleared his throat. "Maybe another time. We don't want the noise to bring down more walkers on us."

Eugene nodded, lost in his own thoughts. "Maybe a flame thrower then." Then he got up and left the meeting, mumbling a little to himself as he walked away.

"I'd say for someone to keep an eye on him, but I don't think that would do any good," Rick said and looked at Noah. "I know ya hadn't spent much time with Reg, but do ya have anythin' ya can tell us about the walls that might be important. Weak points or spots that are out of sight that could be easy targets for 'em?"

Noah looked around the room and nodded. "It's not really part of the wall," he said quietly and his eyes shifted quickly to Daryl and away. "There's a basement in the hospital house. There's a door behind a metal cabinet along the far back wall. It leads straight outside the walls and into a woods about half a mile away."

"And you're just now sharin' this?" Abraham's voice was loud in the small room. "We need a guard on that fuckin' door!"

"There's only two people that knew about it before me," he said quietly. "Deanna and Reg didn't want anyone to know that way if someone got banished, they wouldn't have a way back in."

"It makes sense," Daryl said. "It's also our way out if things go bad."

Rick nodded. "This doesn't leave this room." The tone of his voice left no room for discussion. If it got out about that passage, he would know exactly who could have told, and it wouldn't be pretty.

* * *

For the next two days, walkers wandered up in packs of ten to twenty at least twice a day. They'd come from the west then from the south finally from the north. The eastern wall that held the gate never at a single walker along it.

Just like they had decided, no one went outside the fence, and the work crew spent a good bit of time making the gate stronger. To kill the walkers, they put up ladders and climbed up and shot down at them, using the silencers from the armory.

Deanna had been a pain in the ass when it came to decision-making. She seemed to think that she still had a say in what happened, but Rick was trying to make it clear that while she could pretend to be the head honcho, him and his people were the ones taking this shit over.

If she fucked up with Pete, Nicholas, and Aiden and allowed for a mentality of "Run away. Don't fight," she sure as hell didn't need to be in charge of this operation.

Finally, with the support of several founding community members, she got everyone besides their group to decide that a council should be created. That gave them all flashbacks to the prison, but without it, they couldn't move forward.

That went to a vote of course. During the two days that they were working hard to get shit ready, she had been creating ballots and counting votes. It blew his mind that she was wasting all that time on something that didn't even fucking matter because they were still doing what needed to be done without her say while she jumped through proper hoops. Merle decided that she was still too far stuck in the past.

After a day of voting and counting the new council consisted of five people.

Deanna.

Carol.

Maggie.

Abraham.

And a man named Tobin.

This new council met and decided that Abraham should be in charge of strategy and defense, which he pretty much already was. It took a hell of a lot of arguing with Deanna, but Maggie finally convinced her that Abraham should be allowed to pick who he wanted for the positions he deemed necessary and not have to get council approval—which they had already done anyway.

Even after all that planning to get stuff back how Deanna wanted, they still managed to control things because they held three seats on a five-seat council.

While they had been clearing the wall, the others had been given jobs, too. Rick was put in charge of gun training inside the homes so if someone was watching, they wouldn't see. Daryl was on wall duty when he wasn't taking care of Beth. Michonne was still acting as constable, but had also been checking out guns to families for home protection. Surprisingly, Morgan had taken to going around and visiting with each household then installing little traps they could set up during the night and push into place quickly if they heard the signal.

When Merle asked what he was doing to the front porch of their home, Morgan smiled and told him to stand back. He used his staff and tapped on the bottom step. From out of nowhere an axe swung from the porch roof, slicing through the air where a person could have been walking.

"I may have picked up a few things along the way," he had said with a small grin.

"You're insane," Merle said. "Smart as hell, but crazy."

"I've been told that from time to time."

Of that, Merle had absolutely no doubt.

* * *

"I don't think anyone's comin'," a young man said as they moved the ladders to the western wall for the second, and usually finally, time of the day.

"They're runnin' us around," Daryl said, cutting off another man who was about to start talking. "They're out there, and they're watchin' us."

"If that's true, then why do you stay down on the ground? Why isn't that black chick shootin' 'em from a distance? Y'all are supposed to be the best, right?"

"Ya don't show your hand," Daryl said and propped the ladder along the wall. "This is the last one we'll do with guns, too."

"What?" A shocked voice asked from the mass of people.

"We can't use all our bullets, can we?" He asked, and Merle shook his head. "And we want 'em to think they're all gone. When they bust in that gate, we'll put holes in 'em."

Everyone was working hard to ensure things went smoothly when the Wolves came. From a distance, it looked like they were going about their normal business with the exception of the men killing walkers instead of going outside the gate for construction projects and hunting.

If they were up in the trees keeping watch, all they saw were a bunch of confused people that seemed a bit scattered and scared.

"I bet they wait until it's dark," one guy said. "It'd be harder to take 'em out at night."

Daryl nodded. He had thought about that, too. It's what he would have done if it had been him.

There was no telling really when they would pounce or how they would do it. They were crazy, and no one could predict their next move. For now, they seemed okay with sending in the walkers, and the group inside the safe zone agreed to sleep in shifts and that the lights should be killed completely at night.

All in all, he and the others were staring to feel pretty confident that they were prepared. The one thing that really worried them was fire.

If the Wolves knew they were going to lose, would they just burn it all down? It was with that thought that made the group decide that if things went south, they would meet at the cabin they had found when they had been separated from him weeks earlier.

This thoughts were killing him, though. The plan was a good one, but Beth wasn't even walking that well, and she leaned heavily on Daryl for help. When he was gone, she depended on Enid with Carl and Bob as their defense. As soon as the shit started to get serious, Margot had stopped coming to help with Beth. Daryl didn't blame her, she had a family to look after, but that was just one less person on the inside to help.

Even though Merle had given Beth another gun that she kept close by, it wasn't enough to take on several men running through the doors at once. If it looked bad at the gate, Daryl was going to run and get her and the kids out. His goals would change the moment things took a turn.

That night, he lay in bed beside Beth, and they talked about what could go down. She was convinced that they would come with walkers from all angles and attack the gate when the groups focus was pulled in so many directions.

Daryl thought that they would sneak up on them and not bring any walkers at all. They liked to make walkers, so they'd want as many people alive as they could get.

In the end, neither one of them was really right.

* * *

Early the next morning, Sasha radioed down from the tower that two men were approaching the front gate on foot. Merle ran up to the tower and looked around, there was nothing moving in the woods or anywhere else.

Just those two men, walking calmly forward, 'W's marked on their foreheads.

"Keep that gun locked on 'em," he told her as he started to slip out.

"I will," she said then right as he started to shut the door she said, "Be careful, Dixon."

He nodded and shut the door behind himself. He let out a sharp whistle once he got back outside then did it again a few seconds later. He waited at the bottom of the tower then heard other whistles throughout the safe zone as people peeked out from second floor windows, guns at the ready.

Merle took a deep breath and walked forward, meeting Abraham and Rick as they moved toward the gate. Daryl fell into step soon after, his bow hanging at his side. Michonne was already at the gate, her blade drawn, and Morgan stood beside her, no weapon but his walking stick. Glenn fell in behind them all with Maggie at his side, guns drawn.

Rick looked at each of them. "We know who these people are. Just like Terminus. Don't hesitate. They won't."


	28. Chapter 28

Ch. 28

Thank you so much for reading! I'd really love to know what you think of this one.

* * *

Rick motioned for the young guy manning the gate to pull it back, and Daryl raised his bow in reaction, his fingers were twitchy already. The two men were smirking a little as they walked right in and neither flinched as the gate closed behind them.

"Can we help you two?" Rick asked, resting his hand on his gun.

"We're just here to talk," one of them said and looked at the group.

"We ain't lookin' for new friends," Merle said and adjusted the buckles on his prosthetic.

One of them snorted and Morgan asked, "What's the 'W' for?"

That made the man on the right perk up a little. "You know, the first settlers here, they put bounties on wolves' heads. Brought the natives into it. Made 'em hunt 'em. Didn't take 'em too long to kill 'em all. They're back now." He looked around to the group in front of him. "Thoughts?"

"Everythin' gets a return," Morgan said with a shrug. He seemed unfazed by this brand of insane, and maybe it was because he had been lost in his own head before.

"Are you shittin' me?" The man on the left asked with a laugh.

Morgan laughed, too. "No, I shit you not."

All three of them continued to chuckle for a moment, and Daryl wondered if he had made a mistake and Morgan was actually with the Wolves, and they had all been played. Then the man started talking again, and his words made Morgan straighten up a little.

"I like this. Just talkin'. We don't get to meet new people very often and never this many at a time. Maybe once every two weeks we see a few new ones."

"That's a lot," Michonne said.

He looked over Michonne, and his smile turned almost predatory as he scanned her body. "Oh, we work at it. We really do. Sometimes we find camps. We run through 'em. But we have traps, too." He paused for a moment. "It's different. It's not like meetin' like this—as equals. Little chats at the gate. That's the closest thing to movies now." He got a distant look in his eyes and said almost to himself. "I miss the movies. I used to—put that down," he said and turned to the boy at the gate who had picked up a metal t-post.

"Why's he gotta put anythin' down? You don't run this" Abraham asked.

"'Cause I will. I want everythin' you have."

Daryl's finger tensed on the trigger of his bow as he met the eyes of one of the men there.

"I remember you," he said and nudged the other guy to look at Daryl. "He had the blonde girl."

His skin crawled as he thought that maybe they had been the ones that were tracked and not the other way around.

"We almost came out when y'all were at the food center, but the Jedi showed up." He sighed and said again, "I miss the movies."

The other man shook his head and went back on topic it seemed. "Some of the tribes around here, they thought that the first people were wolves transformed into men. And now, well, you know." He looked directly at Morgan and smirked. "Everything gets a return, right?" He scanned the others next. "This one took a lot more plannin' than we're used to, so you'll forgive us if it isn't as quick as it usually is."

Morgan shook his head, "Doesn't need to be any ugliness."

"That's all there is," the man said. He pulled out a flare gun from his side pocket and raised it in the air. Daryl pulled the trigger and the bolt struck him straight in the eye. He squeezed the trigger on reflex and shot off to the side as he fell.

The other man's head was separated from his body before he could move at Daryl thanks to Michonne's katana.

It was too late, though.

He could hear them from the woods, screaming like banshees.

Sasha's voice cracked over the radio. "There's at least twenty men. There are walkers, too, at the western side of the fence. They just started wanderin' out of the trees, and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight."

"Where are the men?" Abraham barked into the radio.

"Comin' right down the road."

The Wolves hit the gate, and they all backed up and readied their weapons. The people Rick had taught filled in behind them, while some stayed in the houses, protecting their families that way.

The first of the Wolves topped the fence and fell back just as quickly as Sasha took him down.

"We're gonna have to go hand-to-hand," Abraham yelled. "She don't need to waste her bullets."

Just then his radio squawked and Carol came on, "I'm in the tower with Sasha. We've got plenty of ammo, and I'm takin' the walkers while she takes the Wolves."

Abraham picked it up and hollered, "Keep an eye in the other directions. They're baitin' us."

Carol didn't respond, but she didn't need to. They all knew what this was and what was coming. Or at least they thought they did.

The men stopped coming over the fence and the group backed up, watching, waiting for their next move.

"What're they doin'?" Abraham barked into the radio.

"They're puttin' somethin' on the gate. Back up now!" Carol yelled. "Run! Get outta there!"

They barely made it twenty yards before the gate blew off the hinges, shrapnel cutting into the skin of his back. Everyone fell, and he knew their faces were scrapping the concrete just like his.

"Get up!" Sasha yelled into the radio.

Carol must have been shooting the ones running through the gate because he heard the faint pops in his ringing ears as he tried to stand.

To his right, Abraham struggled to get up with a piece of metal sticking out of his shoulder.

Daryl almost went to help him, but saw the Wolves running towards them.

He grasped his bow tightly in his hand and drew it back and slammed it into the face of the nearest man that wasn't theirs. For a long time, it was nothing but yelling and crashes of bodies as they fought and killed each other.

Then it became them against the Wolves _and_ the walkers as those that had been killed turned, and the ones that had heard the explosion made it through the opening where the gate had been.

The radio crackled to his left and Abraham struggled to grab it with his injured arm.

"Got it," Merle said and took over.

The next words he heard chilled him the bone.

"More men just took down the back wall. They're runnin' into homes. Get ours and get out!"

Suddenly protecting the safe zone wasn't any of their priority anyway. Rick wiped blood from his brow and pointed behind them with his knife. "Get our people. We're gone."

Just then the radio crackled again, "They're burnin' us out," Sasha said through the radio. "The tower's on fire."

Merle looked to Daryl and nodded. "I'll see ya around, baby brother."

"Yeah, man. Get your ass back to that cabin."

Once again, the Dixon brother's parted ways. This time on their own terms.

* * *

He found the door to the hospital house already open, and he tried to push down any fear he might have had wondering if Beth were alive or not. If any of them were alive.

Inside the front room, Beth's bed was empty, and he could smell the smoke and hear the terrified screams from outside in the streets. There were two bodies in the floor, bullet holes in their heads, and he walked around those with his bow at the ready.

The bottom floor was clear, and that's when he knew they had already ran, at least Beth and the kids. Bob would go looking for Sasha. He knew that much.

Daryl went down to the basement and found the cabinet moved and the door ajar. He had no flashlight or way to see. All their things were in their room a few houses down.

It was the prison all over again.

An overwhelming panic hit him as he walked into the darkness of the passageway. Before he left, he marked a line in the wall, hoping to let the next people know that someone had gotten out.

* * *

There wasn't a thing Merle could do about the tower. It was already going up and Sasha and Carol were trapped up top. There was a house beside them, but it was a good ten-foot drop from where they were to its roof. They'd end up sliding down or breaking something, he was sure, but it was their only option.

"Jump!" He hollered and pointed to the roof.

Both of them were covering their faces from the smoke, and Carol yelled, "Look out!"

Merle turned and ducked out of the way just in time to avoid a knife to the neck. He went back and forth trading blows with some guy that couldn't have been more than eighteen, ending it when he knocked him so hard in the stomach that the kid doubled over and then he put his knife hand through his head.

At that moment, there was a dull thud and screech. He looked up and saw Sasha trying to find a grip on the roof, but she continued to slide. Her hands caught the gutter, and it slowed her fall a little as it broke off the roof, but she landed hard on the group.

Not ten seconds later, Carol jumped from the tower and landed on the house roof.

Merle couldn't look to see how she came down off the roof because three walkers rounded the corner and stumbled toward them. The new ones were the worst. They were faster and stronger than the ones they usually ran in to.

Sasha struggled to her feet beside him and took the pistol from her side. They managed to take care of all of them then he turned and watched Carol fall to the ground. She groaned and pushed to stand up.

The heat from the fire was overwhelming, and he grabbed her arm and drug her toward the clinic as Sasha kept an eye behind them.

There was blood and carnage everywhere they turned. Wolves stood on porch steps covered in blood and carrying bats. There were screams deep inside some houses that let them know that the torture was far from over. There was no way to take them all, though.

There were more men than he thought there had been originally and walkers kept showing up in droves. He turned around and saw a group of Alexandrians trying to push a piece of siding up to close the whole in the gate, but there were too many walkers and people.

A truck came out of nowhere and plowed through the makeshift siding, running over the men there. A whole other group of men jumped out of the back, but one man climbed on top of the cab and looked around.

He said something to the men around him, but Merle couldn't hear. He leaned against a baseball bat with black lines all around it. He had no idea who he was or what he was doing, but he had a suspicion that he was behind all of this.

"We gotta go," he said and pushed them in front of him as they struggled on down the street.

Once they were in the clinic, Sasha stopped and looked around. "I can't go. I've gotta find Bob."

"It's suicide!" Merle yelled. "If he's out there, he's either dead or gonna end up that way soon."

"I've gotta try," she whispered. "He can't end up alone again."

Merle didn't know what to say to that, but Sasha didn't give him a chance. She limped back out the door with her gun over her shoulder. Merle shook his head and pushed Carol toward the basement door.

When they were about to run into the passage, Merle noticed a deep cut in the wall and let out a sigh of relief. Someone had gotten out already, and if he were lucky, it had been his brother and Beth along with those kids.

* * *

Daryl was sure he had walked for miles. The darkness had a way of making everything seem endless. Finally he saw a pinprick of light, and he moved faster toward the end of it. It was there that he almost tripped over someone's legs.

A little sound of pain made him drop to his knees.

"Beth?"

"Daryl?" She asked in a whisper.

"Where's Carl? Judith?"

Beth seemed to struggle for breath. "She's with Carl and Enid. They left me so they could try and find a car. I couldn't have taken care of her right now."

Daryl reached out to touch her face. He couldn't see a damn thing, though, and ended up reaching her neck. He knew it was blood without seeing it.

"Stitches got busted," she muttered.

"Can I carry ya?"

Beth sighed and made a noise that sounded like, "Yes."

She weighed nothing in his arms, and he carried her out into the daylight. Daryl turned and looked back toward Alexandria. Once his eyes adjusted to all the light, he saw nothing but smoke.

Walkers would be all over the area soon.

He looked down at Beth and saw the stitches on her cheek were broken, and she had blood seeping through her top.

"Did they hurt ya?" He asked.

"No," she whispered. "Tryin' to run and bein' nearly cut in half don't really mix."

"Fuck," he mumbled.

His eyes scanned the ground for a second before he picked up on Carl's trail. Within a few minutes, he had found him and Enid with Judith squalling in the backseat of a car that they were trying to hotwire.

"Don't fuck it up anymore than ya already have," he barked, making them both jump. "Pick up the baby. I gotta lay Beth down."

Enid grabbed the little girl and tried to shush her as Daryl carefully laid Beth in the backseat.

"Get in there with her," he said to Enid.

The girl nodded and raised up Beth's legs a little and put them in her lap before settling Judith against her shoulder.

"Get in the car, Carl."

"What about my dad?" He asked, looking toward the safe zone.

"He's a tough sonofabitch. He'll be fine."

The car was started in a matter of minutes, and he let it idle, hoping someone else would come out of the woods and into the little neighborhood where they were at. Maybe Merle could track them to it.

When no one showed up after ten minutes had passed, Daryl turned the car around and went the opposite way of Alexandria.

He would get them back to the cabin, and he would pray that some of their group would join them again soon.

* * *

Merle and Carol waited in the woods outside the passage for twenty minutes before they heard people coming.

He pulled her behind him since she was hurt and watched the opening. If it was the bad guys, they would have to be quiet and try and slip away. He hoped it was their group, though. He didn't know what he would do otherwise.

The first person he saw was Rick then Michonne, Glenn, and Maggie.

"Hey!" He called out as he stepped from behind the tree. Rick drew his gun, but put it away just as quickly. "It just y'all?"

All of them looked around at each other, seemingly coming to grips that they were the only ones to make it out.

"We know for sure Eugene's gone," Rick said.

Glenn looked away. "There was nothin' we could do. I tried."

"We all did," Michonne said quietly. Her voice was full of conviction.

"How'd it happen?" Carol asked.

"He got taken out by a sharp shooter after coming out with a damn flame thrower he made from somethin'. He saved me and Glenn," Maggie said and cleared her throat. "I don't know about the rest."

"Sasha ran to look for Bob, but we didn't see where to," Carol said.

"I didn't see Abraham after the gate exploded. Rosita was supposed to stay inside, but I saw her out fightin'. I lost sight of her when those guys rammed the gate with the truck," Rick said quietly. "Noah was down there near 'em so was Morgan."

"Fuck," Merle said.

"Did y'all get Carl and Judith out?" Rick asked, looking around.

"No," Carol said. "They were already gone when we got there. Daryl ran for the house first, so we think maybe him and Beth got them out."

Rick looked like he was on the verge of tears. "Who the hell were those people?"

"The Wolves were just the troops. The real threat was that guy that rode in towards the end."

"Yeah, but why?" Glenn asked. "If he can control the Wolves, he must already have a place set up."

"Nothin' nicer than what they had in Alexandria," Merle said.

"Yeah even if half of it's burned to the ground," Maggie said. "They'd been watchin' for awhile. They didn't get near the solar panels or electrical grid."

"They wanted it for themselves," Michonne said. "They'll set it up like another Terminus. Whoever comes that way now will be in for nothin' but pain."

"We can't stay around here," Merle said, looking over them. "We get to that cabin and after a couple of days, we leave. They'll find that basement door soon enough, and they'll try and track us."

Rick nodded, his mind was elsewhere, though.

"Let's go then. Sooner we get to the cabin, the sooner we know if the others survived this."

They walked, following tracks that Merle already found, and got to a small neighborhood where they stole a car and started back toward the cabin.

There was nothing but silence as they drove down the road, dodging walkers that had come up due to the noise. He looked in the rearview mirror once before taking his eyes away and staring straight forward.

Wasn't no point in looking back.


	29. Chapter 29

Ch. 29

Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!

Things are winding down now.

* * *

They drove until the gas ran out but still hadn't made it to the cabin.

The noise had brought down more walkers than Daryl had seen in a long time, and the roads were full of them.

One time along the way, they got surrounded and couldn't move forward at all. Walkers had just spilled out of nowhere, and he didn't want to risk running them down and getting stuck, so they sat in the car with walkers banging all around them and Judith crying. When the herd thinned out a little, Daryl hit the gas, ignoring his earlier fear of getting stuck. If another walker slammed into that back window beside Carl, it was going to shatter.

It was almost dark, and they stood in an abandoned house with no food or medicine. Beth's wound was seeping, but he had already looked over it and knew that it was the bottom stitches, near her hip, that had ripped when she was running. Her cheek wasn't too terrible, so he didn't worry about that one.

On the weapons end of things, they had three guns with no ammo. Daryl had his bow, but Beth's had been left behind. She had her knife and Carl and Enid had theirs, too.

There was no food, and Judith was sniffling in her sleep from screaming most of the afternoon.

"What do we do?" Enid asked quietly.

"We get to that cabin," Daryl answered. "Tomorrow we'll find another car. I'll go huntin' for some food."

He looked over at Beth who was holding a clean towel she had found against her lower body.

"Gotta find some gauze and tape," he said mostly to himself.

"Did ya see my dad?" Carl asked, staring a hole in the floor.

"He was takin' care of himself when I went to find Beth. I'm sure he's fine," Daryl answered. "Your old man's tough as hell."

Carl nodded but didn't look convinced.

Daryl didn't know for sure, but he wasn't going to say that. Until Rick came back, Carl and Judith were his responsibilities along with Enid. She didn't have family, though, so she would always be his now.

"Y'all go on to bed," he motioned to the pillows and blankets they had gathered and put on the floor. "I'll keep watch."

They did as they were told, and it didn't take them long before the exhaustion caught up with them, and they passed out.

That was when he moved over to Beth and took away the towel. The tear was jagged but not deep. It had already healed a little from the inside.

"It'll be fine," she said. "It's just oozin' now."

"Yeah, but what if it gets infected?" He asked. "What if ya get some walker blood in it?"

"I won't." She grinned. "You're gonna take care of me, right?"

He shook his head then leaned it against her shoulder. "What the fuck are we gonna do, arrow? We got nothin' right now."

Beth was silent for a long time then she said, "I don't know. As much as I know I'll be fine, I don't think I can run yet, Daryl."

"I know," he whispered.

He stared at her wound for a long time before she said, "I think you should take the kids and go."

"Fuck no," he said and shook his head.

"Not forever," she said with a laugh, though it wasn't funny at all. "Just get them to their dad, okay? There's only so many times he can think he's lost them all. Then come back for me."

He closed his eyes and shook his head. "I can't do that. Not gonna leave ya here with no way of defendin' yourself."

"I've got my knife, and if I'm really quiet, nothin's gonna get me."

"Shit, Beth, we ain't that far from the Wolves. They may have taken over Alexandria, but I doubt they're gonna stop roamin' and killin' now that they got a base camp."

She took his hand and held it tightly. "Then what do you wanna do?"

He swallowed hard. "I'm gonna take Carl with me in the mornin', and we're gonna find us a new car. Then I'm gonna come back and get y'all, and we'll finish the rest of the trip."

Beth sighed. "There's nothin' out there to drive, Daryl, and we haven't seen anythin' for miles. Ya know that. We'd have stopped for the gas if we had."

Her words were making his stomach sink and his heart race. "I'm not gonna leave you."

Neither one of them said anything else, and soon Beth had fallen asleep, too. He sat with his back against the wall, facing the front door. There was no noise outside, and even Judith was sound asleep now, her whimpers gone completely.

He clasped his hands together on his knees and bowed his head to lean against them. Daryl wasn't a praying man. He never had been, wasn't raised in the church or taught about God or the Bible. Hershel had been a God-fearing man, though, and he respected him more than anyone else in the world.

So, he took a deep breath even though he was talking inside his head, and began to ask for help.

* * *

Merle groaned as he leaned against the tree and looked through the woods. They'd been on the run since the car got stuck in some mud then a shitload of walkers had come over a hill headed straight for them and Alexandria behind them.

He was dog-tired, and everyone behind him was, too.

The worst part was that none of them knew where they were. They had taken off into the woods, but now that they were there, none of them could point the way out. They had looked to him for guidance at first, but he had shrugged. "I'm about as useless as tits on a tomcat right now."

The sun was starting to rise and Carol walked up beside him. "Did you sleep at all?"

"No," he said quietly.

"Ya gotta rest."

"I'll rest when we get where we're goin'."

She nodded. "If we don't find them soon, I think Rick's gonna lose it."

Merle looked down at her. "He's always on the verge of losin' it."

She snorted softly. "How do we fix this?"

"Ain't no way of fixin' it now. The Wolves got the safe zone. Anyone inside is dead now or wishin' they were. There's too many of 'em, and the man that rolled up in there after we were beat looked pretty psycho from where I was standin'."

"We were really far away," she said with a shrug.

"Yeah, anybody that can get some assholes to do that kind of killin' for him then ride on in and take over, ain't someone ya mess with. I bet he makes the Governor look like a playground bully."

"You're probably right."

"I know I am," he said forcefully. "We need to leave this area. Ain't no good gonna come from stayin'."

They stood silently for a while before she asked, "Do ya think they made it out?"

"Yes," he said immediately. "They got out. All of 'em."

Carol didn't respond, and he knew it was because she wasn't too sure. They had lost a lot of people, but maybe they hadn't. He hadn't actually seen anyone die. Maybe they were just all separated again. Maybe things would be okay.

He sighed. That was a whole lot of maybes.

* * *

Beth tried to stand but the stabbing pain in her stomach wouldn't let her.

She had to go to the bathroom, but there was no way she could go alone.

Like he had said he was going to do the night before, Daryl took Carl and they went looking for a new vehicle or more gas. She was left with Enid and Judith.

The young girl sat across from her, silently staring at the door like she was expecting people to charge through at any moment. Judith lay sleeping beside her.

"Enid?" Beth said softly.

She snapped her eyes to Beth and tried to appear calm. "Yeah?"

"Could ya help me to the bathroom?"

She nodded and stood up. For the last few days, she had been helping Beth with this anyway.

Each step she took, even with Enid's help, was torture.

"Thanks," she told her once she was standing inside the bathroom door.

"I'll be right out here," she said and closed the door to give Beth some privacy.

She finished as quickly as she could and managed to get her pants pulled up and buttoned on her own for once.

She would give Daryl and Carl until tonight then they were going to leave her here and walk the rest of the way to cabin without her. Daryl was certain it was only an hour away on foot then he could come back for her.

Judith needed a solid shelter and her father. Enid needed to feel like she had plenty of protection around her. She didn't know much about the girl's past, but she knew she had lost too much, too quickly to be so young.

Without a doubt, Daryl would fight her on it, but she would tell him that she could hole up in one of the upstairs bedrooms and wait for him to come back.

Beth opened the door, and Enid stepped forward to help her back to the living room. She slowly sat down on the couch right as Judith woke up.

"We don't have any food for her," Enid whispered. "She's gonna start cryin' again. What do we do if someone comes? If the dead ones hear her?"

Beth let out a slow breath, trying to keep her stomach from turning as the burning subsided a little. "We need to get her somethin' to chew on. Go look in the kitchen. Maybe there's somethin' we missed since it was dark last night. Then go upstairs and look around again."

"Do ya want me to take her with me?"

Beth watched Judith. She was sitting up and looking from side-to-side. "Yeah, maybe movin' around will keep her quiet a little longer."

After searching the house again, Enid found nothing and Judith was starting to cry. It had all happened so fast, that they had barely had time to grab Judith's diaper bag, but her formula was long gone, and any little snacks she could have weren't available anymore.

"Can ya get me her rag out of the bag?"

Enid did as she asked, and Beth poured a little bit of water over the end of it. "Here, sweetheart." She put the rag against Judith's chapped lips and the baby began sucking in earnest. It calmed her down, and Enid sat down on the couch beside Beth with a huge sigh of relief.

"We're good for a little bit longer," she said.

"Yeah," Beth agreed. "A little bit."

* * *

Daryl and Carl walked for an hour before they found a grouping of cars outside an old gas station. It took them another hour to syphon all the gas and put it into one tank while dealing with the stray groups of walkers that wandered up.

They were on their way back to the house around mid-morning, and Carl asked, "What do we do now?"

Daryl shrugged. "Find that cabin. Scavenge and hunt. Try and keep our people alive."

"That's what we did before," Carl said and looked out the window.

"That's the only thing we can do. Ya gotta take care of your little sister. I gotta make sure Beth is okay."

"What about Enid?" Carl asked.

Daryl met Carl's eyes. "Enid can take care of herself. That's why I left her with Beth today. It's good to look out for each other, but if we all get separated again, Enid would be able to survive on her own, so would you and me. Beth wouldn't last long with that injury, and ya don't need me to tell ya how fast Judith would die."

Carl nodded then leaned his seat back. "Can I sleep some?"

Daryl glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. His hat was in his lap and his eyes were closed. It was so easy to forget how young Carl was, but in that moment, he really looked like the kid he should have been able to be.

"Yeah," he said quietly. "Get some rest."

* * *

They made it to the cabin later that afternoon after dodging walkers all along the way. Daryl got out of the car first to make sure it was still secure since the front door was wide open.

He came back a few minutes later, shaking his head as he got in the car.

"What?" Beth asked and reached for his hand.

"Got some great writing all over the walls now."

Her heart sunk. "Was it our people?" She asked, her heart pounding in her chest.

"Nah," he shook his head. "Just another unlucky bastard that got jumped."

"What do we do, Daryl?" Carl asked from the back seat as he held Judith.

Beth looked over at Daryl and saw him staring through the windshield, lost in his thoughts. They were completely defeated.

Daryl got out of the car again and went inside. When he walked back out, he was shaking a can of spray paint and then started writing on the front door.

_Going back to Hershel's. _

_DD, BG, CG, JG, &amp; E._

_One day after ASZ fell._

Beth couldn't believe her eyes, and when they filled with tears the words blurred together anyway. He was going to take her home, and he had let them know without giving any clues to Wolves that might stop by.

* * *

Merle beat his fist against the tree in front of the cabin. They were three days late, and it was obvious why Daryl had moved them on.

The Wolves had struck again, and Daryl was trying to protect the people he was with.

Underneath Daryl's message was another one.

_Abraham and Rosita._

_Continuing on._

_Morgan and Noah_

_Going back to KC._

_Two days after ASZ fell._

"They've got the kids. They're gonna get 'em there," Rick said. "Time to go back."

"This was a wasted trip," Maggie said.

Glenn shook his head. "We go back and do what?"

Rick shrugged. "We survive. Just like we've been doin'."

"This ain't survivin'," Merle said angrily and turned toward them. "This was us bein' up in the air after the prison fallin'. We just ran and ran and got knocked down all along the way. Been chasin' white rabbits all over this fuckin' country, and now, we're headin' back to where it started pretty much?"

Carol walked beside him and put a hand over his shoulder. Her touch was gentle, drawing him in. "Yeah, we go back and with all our experience, we try and start over."

"Can we?" He asked, not just her but the rest of the group.

Michonne, who had been silent nearly the entire time since the Wolves took over, finally spoke up. "We have to do somethin'. If we stay on the path we're on, there's no savin' any of us."

"We don't get to go back," Rick said from the porch. "We don't get to start over. We can go back to Georgia, but there's no erasin' what's happened. No way to change back to the men and women we were before this. Hell, even the people we were before the prison fell or the farm."

"We've gotta try," Maggie said earnestly. "I can't pretend anymore, and I think if we go back home, we can keep to ourselves, Rick. That's what always gets us—when we start building a place."

"We're gonna go back," he said. "I'm not leavin' my kids. I'm just sayin' that we can't gloss over the past. We have to own it and move on. Acknowledge our mistakes and not make 'em again."

Merle was about ready to pop off, but Michonne beat him to it. "Can you do those things, too, Rick? This isn't just a statement directed at the rest of us, right?"

The held each other's stare for a long time, and Merle wondered why nothing had come from that relationship but realized it was probably because Michonne spoke the truth too plainly at times, and Rick didn't want to hear it. Kinda like him and Carol.

Rick was the first one to look away with a slight nod. "Yeah. I won't say that I won't mess up, but I'll promise to try and not make the same mistakes."

Michonne nodded and turned back to the cars. "We've got enough gas to get us a good ways. If we take turns drivin', even through the night, we can get back before mornin'."

"I'll drive first," Glenn said and went toward the truck they had stolen. "Everyone pile in."

* * *

The barn was burnt to the ground, but the fire hadn't spread to the house. It seemed like God had spared it altogether. It had been almost three years since they had ran, but it was still in perfection condition.

The windows were boarded still, and the front door remained closed. Daryl insisted they sweep the inside, but once they had done that, they found that it had remained untouched since they moment they had took off years before.

The air was musty, so they left the front door open with Carl keeping watch as he helped Beth up the stairs and peek into each room.

Beth felt tears well in her eyes as she looked over her family pictures scattered around her room, her friends that had long since been dead, her family that was gone, too. Prom pictures, and trips to the lake, all documented and frozen in time.

"Ya were a cute little girl," he said quietly from her left.

She turned and saw him looking down at the picture of her when she was about six, front teeth missing and holding a fish from her line. Her daddy was standing right behind her, his eyes bright and his smile blinding.

That was when the tears became too much, and the ache in her throat was too hard to ignore. The sob that escaped relieved it for only a second before more followed after. Soon, she was being hugged so tightly that she wondered if Daryl thought he was holding her together.

"We shoulda gone some place else," he muttered.

"No," she said quickly. "No, this is perfect."


	30. Chapter 30

Ch. 30

Thank you for reading!

* * *

Nothing ever went how they planned.

Merle was walking down a dirt county road with Carol by his side and Maggie and Glenn behind them. A herd overran the car a few days earlier and Rick and Michonne had gone one way, and they had gone another as they tried to get away.

They hadn't met back up yet, but they all knew where they were going anyway.

It was starting to get really cold, though, and no matter how much they walked during the day, they didn't stay warm. They were all skin and bones, and there was no food anywhere. They had no weapons but their knives, and it took too long to set up a snare and wait for the food.

"There's a house up on that hill," Carol said quietly. "Maybe we can find out where we're at."

"We're still in South Carolina," Glenn said. "I think we're always gonna be in South Carolina."

Maggie hummed in response. In another time, it would have been more like a laugh, but now they were just all too tired to try.

"Maybe there's a car then," Carol said, her voice was breaking a little.

Merle looked out of the corner of his eye at her and watched her wipe her cheek before walking faster down the road. Over the last couple of days, she had started to break. He wasn't surprised by it, everyone had that moment eventually, but it hurt him to see her fall like that.

He didn't move to catch up with her. Instead, he slowed down to walk beside Glenn. He would have never thought when all this started, he would have considered these two his friends, but now he did. That was mostly due to their forgiving natures and the hand of God slapping some sense into his ass, or maybe it was just a sweet, southern girl with blonde hair and kind smile. He didn't know. It didn't matter.

"Y'all think we should settle for the winter?"

Maggie closed her eyes and took a steadying breath. "I don't wanna stop. I wanna go home."

He nodded and looked to Glenn. "It makes sense to stop. We're worn out. We have no food."

"But I need to get home," Maggie said again.

"Do ya wanna get there alive or only in your head?" Merle asked.

"I just wanna scream," she whispered. "If we had this much trouble, what happened to them?" She asked in a soft voice. "What about Beth? She wasn't well. And they had Judith with them. What happened to her?"

Merle clenched his jaw tight to hold back saying anything dismissive. He wanted to say they were all fine and dandy. That his baby brother could move mountains and take on hordes of walkers with just his bow. That Carl and Enid were well-trained little badasses that would stand at his brother's back.

For the first time since the safe zone fell, so did Merle's blinders.

"We might never know," he said then cleared his throat. "Just gotta worry about ourselves right now."

Glenn put his hand on Maggie's shoulder, but she shrugged him off and walked away.

"I remember when I woke up at the prison, after it had gotten blown to hell, and I was the only one there besides Tara. Maggie was gone, and I didn't know how, but I knew she had gotten out. I never once felt like all hope was lost, you know?" He glanced at Merle and met his stare. "I feel empty right now. I feel no hope at all."

"Yeah," Merle said with a nod. "I know what ya mean."

* * *

The house on the hill was dusty and needed a good airing out, but it was solid. It had decent vantage points, and he could set up snares.

There were no walkers inside and the windows had been boarded up, so it seemed at one point it could have been a safe house, but the people hadn't come back one day.

It wasn't unusual really. When things went to hell, people would prep their homes then brave the towns for supplies, raid grocery stores or pharmacies, but they'd never make it back.

Before him and Daryl had found the group in Atlanta, they'd stayed the night in a few homes like this one before sticking straight to the woods. It was safer there, at least in the beginning. Nowhere was safe now. The only hope would be that if the walkers stopped getting food, they would deteriorate and eventually waste away into nothing.

"Can we light a fire?" Maggie asked as she huddled on the couch.

"Don't see why not," Merle answered. "It'll just be the smoke that goes out and it's dark. Ain't seen a person in days."

"I can get the wood," Carol said and started toward the door.

"I'll go with ya." Merle stood up and followed her outside.

They walked together in silence as they gathered up the firewood. On the way back to the house, Carol stopped and he almost ran into her back.

"Somethin' wrong?" He asked. "Ya hear somethin'?"

"No," she whispered. "I just don't think it's been this quite in a long time. That's not usually a good thing."

"That's true," he agreed. "We'll just get inside and wait it out. I'm about to freeze my ass off out here."

They got inside and started the fire then blanketed the windows with thick comforters they found upstairs to keep any flicker from being seen from the outside. It didn't take long for Maggie and Glenn to fall asleep, but him and Carol stayed awake, watching the fire and listening for anything unusual.

After a few hours, Carol fell asleep, too, and he was the only one left to keep watch. Nothing ever came, though. They had a warm place to stay, and he fell asleep sometime in the night only to wake up late the next day with everyone still accounted for and safe.

"We'll just stay here," Carol said as she straightened up the blankets they had used the night before.

"Just a few days," Maggie said quietly. "We still need to get back home."

Merle watched the interaction, knowing that there was nothing he could say that would make them feel like they were making the right decision in waiting to move on. He didn't even think Carol was all that worried about the people they were looking for. He watched her move all over the place, fixing things that didn't need touching or reorganizing her pack.

If she stopped, she would fall apart, so she kept on moving.

* * *

A couple of weeks after they found the house, they were all well rested and had managed to eat a decent bit of game from Merle's snares.

"We all know the walkers move slower as it gets colder," Maggie said after they ate dinner one night. "I think that it's probably as cold as it'll get, and we should start movin' again."

Merle and Glenn nodded, but Carol stayed silent, pushing around a piece of rabbit on her plate.

"Game's gonna get harder to find up this way," Merle said. "Colder it gets all the little ones stay outta the weather."

"We found that map in the bedroom," Glenn spoke up. "We know that we've got a good two days of walkin' before we get inside the Georgia state line. I've got a route all mapped out for us. Along the way, we'll find a car. There's gotta be one."

"We can be at my daddy's in three days if we have to walk the first two," Maggie said quietly.

"What if no one's there?" Carol asked. "What if we get there, and there's another note that says they've gone back to the prison or somewhere else? What if they're dead? What if they got overrun just like we did all the way back in Virginia, and they've been gone for weeks, and we'll never know?"

Merle opened his mouth to speak, but Carol kept on talking, her voice getting a little more hysterical with each word.

"My daughter was in barn a pasture away from me for weeks, and I never knew it until the day Shane busted open those doors. It's not like their deaths would be a moment we can feel. That doesn't happen like it does in books. Like you know they're gone. Beth could've split her stitches and bled out. Judith could've cried and brought down a herd on them one day, and they couldn't get away. Daryl could've gone huntin' and fallen down a ravine again. Or maybe the Wolves got 'em as they were leavin' the cabin."

"Stop!" Maggie hollered and slammed her hands onto the tabletop. "Shut your mouth!"

"We can't just live in some fairytale world where everythin' is okay," Carol said and shook her head. "We've been doin' that for years, and every time somethin' bad happens, everyone falls into a depression. It happened after the farm. It happened after the prison. It happened after Alexandria. And you can bet your ass it'll happen again after we get to the farm, and we're the only ones there!"

"Stop it," Merle said and grabbed her hand to keep her from throwing her plate across the room. "Ya need to calm down."

"I'm calm!"

"No, you're actin' crazy. What's goin' on with ya?"

Maggie and Glenn got up and left the kitchen table quietly. Both of them seeing that it was finally happening, and neither one wanting to be around for it.

"Nothin'. I'm just tryin' to wake y'all up!"

Merle sighed and stood up, walking to the counter and leaning against it. "No, ya ain't. Just let it out. Just cry or scream or somethin', but don't push it back down again."

Her breath was coming out in harsh pants and finally tears fell down her cheeks. "Nothin' I've done has mattered at all," she whispered. "I tried to keep us safe. I'd always make her go and hide when he came home. I knew how he looked at her, and I knew what was goin' to happen one day, but I stayed. I couldn't even protect her when there were no walkers, so what made me think I could once it all happened?"

Merle started chewing on his fingernails, the action instantly making Daryl flash across his thoughts. He hadn't protected his brother either, but he had just been a kid himself.

"I killed Karen and David because I thought it would stop the virus, but it didn't. Then I tried to toughen up Mika because she was so sweet and good, but Lizzy ended up killin' her. Then I had to kill Lizzy." She paused, taking in a harsh breath. "She was crying, Merle, right before I did it. She thought I was mad at her for pointin' a gun at me, so she was cryin' because she thought I was mad at her. I shot her in the back of the head, and she was cryin'.

"When Terminus happened, I just wanted to see y'all safe, but I couldn't leave you again. I missed you, so I stayed, and I kept thinkin' I had so many things to atone for. When we got to the safe zone, I kept tryin' to fix things, to keep us safe. I pushed and pushed. I forced you away and ended up bringin' Pete closer. And Beth. How would I have looked Daryl in the eye if she had died? Or you? Or Maggie? I love all of y'all, even Rick, but I just keepin' lettin' y'all down."

"It's not your job," Merle said, his own voice thick with emotion he was unfamiliar with. "Ya can't do it all on your own. You're not meant to."

"We've lost so many good people, but I'm still here. Tyreese was a good man. He took three little girls from a prison that was burnin' down around 'em. He kept 'em safe."

"Tyreese was soft," Merle argued. "He was a good man, but he wouldn't have lasted without ya with him. He wouldn't have been able to take care of what needed to be done with Lizzy after Mika."

"And what does it say about me that I could? Am I heartless?"

Merle crossed them room and gathered up her up in his arms. "Nah," he said. "Ya've got a heart, ya just wanna pretend it ain't there."

"I can't pretend anymore," she cried. "I can't. It hurts. It hurts so much, and I'm so tired."

"I know," he whispered and rocked her a little.

She didn't say anything else, and she finally cried herself to sleep on his shoulder a little while later. Merle carried her into the living room and laid her on her pillow. Glenn and Maggie didn't say anything at first, but finally Maggie asked, "Will we leave tomorrow?"

He nodded. "Yeah, it's time to go."

"Will Carol be okay with that," Glenn asked.

Merle sighed. "She will be."

* * *

A three-day trip turned into five due to not finding any good cars and a group of walkers that they had ran into. Still, they accomplished their goal and arrived at Hershel Greene's driveway.

Maggie stopped and placed her hand on the gate. Merle could see she was shaking and waited for her to pull it together to let them inside.

Carol was standing quietly beside him. She had been that way since she had woken up the morning after her breakdown, but each day, she seemed to be getting better. She wasn't hard all the time anymore.

She reached out and twisted her fingers with his, finally taking the support he offered her freely.

Maggie opened the gate, and they all walked in, making sure to lock it up tight behind them. Nothing down the road screamed to him that anything was out of the ordinary or that people were around. They could have easily come in the back way through the woods, though. Even covered up their tracks if they used a car.

Merle had never been to the Greene farm, but when it came into view for the first time, he could instantly picture Hershel on the porch, and Beth and Maggie as little girls running all over the yard.

It still looked like something out of before even though the barn was burnt down, and there were decaying bodies near it and in the pasture.

He didn't let that ruin the thought of Daryl being there, though. The decay would cover up their smell, so his brother wouldn't have moved the bodies or changed much of anything. He hoped he was right at least.

When they were in front of the house, the door opened slowly and Daryl walked out onto the porch, his crossbow hanging at his side. He stared at them for a long time it seemed like and none of them moved. The door opened again, and this time, Carl, Enid, Michonne and Rick, who was holding Judith, spilled out.

"Where's my sister?" Maggie asked and started walking toward the porch.

Merle wanted to tell her that she was fine. If she had been dead, Daryl wouldn't have been there waiting on them. As soon as Rick had shown up, he would have handed over Carl and Judith then slipped off. It wouldn't have mattered if Merle was on his way or not had she ended up dead along the way.

"Upstairs," Daryl said quietly as she stopped beside him. "Sleeping'. Stitches popped on the way outta Alexandria. Once we got here, I sewed her back up with your dad's kit. She's sore still. Not infected, but it hurts."

"Ya did the best ya could," Maggie said. "Is it the same?" She looked between Rick and Daryl. When they both nodded, she let out a shaky breath. "Daddy woulda been so mad if someone had messed with it."

"Well, one thing we managed to do was shut the door when we left, at least," said Rick as he switched Judith to the other arm and drew Maggie in for a hug. She squeezed him then touched Judith's back before going into the house.

Glenn walked up the steps of the porch and hugged the others. His brother didn't even flinch when Glenn patted his shoulder. Once he was inside, Merle met Daryl's eyes and smirked, "Looks like the guest of honor finally arrived, huh?"

Daryl snorted and shook his head. "Thought you was dead," he said.

"Can't nothin' kill a Dixon but a Dixon, baby brother." He drug Carol along behind him as he went up to stand on the porch beside Daryl. "Ain't I taught ya nothin'?"

"I know," Daryl said but didn't really look like he was paying attention anymore. He was looking out over the pasture, past the burnt out barn and decaying bodies, and Merle thought he sounded a little emotional, but he couldn't tell from his face.

"Anyone know about the others?" Rick asked. "Never saw Sasha and Bob, and when we got to the cabin their names weren't there."

"Didn't see 'em along the way," Merle said. "They don't know what 'Hershel's' is, so if they did make it out, I doubt we'll see 'em again."

"I didn't think about that when I wrote it," Daryl muttered. "I's just thinkin' about gettin' her back someplace familiar and safe."

"It's okay, Daryl." Michonne said.

"It ain't. I hung 'em out to dry."

"Abraham and Rosita were at the cabin with Morgan and Noah. Morgan who knows the general area of where Hershel's is, but they chose to go on," Rick said and looked over at him. This seemed like a discussion they had before, but no amount of pounding would get it through Daryl's thick skull. "They might have chosen to go on, too. Besides, we didn't think to add to the door either. Ya can't take all the blame."

"We'll never know 'cause we never gave 'em the choice," Daryl muttered.

"No, we won't." Carol's voice caused Merle to turn around and look at her. "It's in the past, though. There's nothin' you can do about it now. It'll eat you up if you let it."

"Look at ya," Merle snarked. "Makin' sense and shit."

Carol rolled her eyes and shook her head. She let go of his hand and walked forward to hug Daryl. His brother hugged her back, and he swore that Carol whispered something as she pulled away, but Daryl didn't say anything to her.

"Well, what do we do now?" Merle asked and took a seat on the railing of the farmhouse.

He watched as everyone looked around the group. No one seemed to know how to answer that. It wasn't like they needed a plan in place at that exact moment, though.

They had time.

Not too much, but enough for them to get their shit together before the next storm blew in. And maybe next time none of them would make it, or maybe nothing would ever come their way again. He didn't know the answers. He was never good with problem solving like this, so he would sit back and wait.

He thought back to when he was younger and a saying that someone had told him, that if you couldn't figure out the answer, just go back to the beginning. In those terms, being back here made sense for a lot of them.

This was as close to the beginning as they were going to get.


End file.
